The Grand Melee
by cometdragon96
Summary: The second Smash Tournament has begun. Princess Zelda, ruler of Hyrule has joined the melee. With an unlikely friendship formed with the solitary bounty hunter Samus. Will they triumph through the tournament, or will old enemies bring the whole thing crashing down.(Zelda/Samus sort of slow burn)
1. Game Set

_**A.N. Hey, this is my first go at writing a Smash Bros fic, so let's hope its not too badXD. Ever since I got Smash Bros 4 I've had the urge to write some fan fiction for it, and since there is a terrible lacking of Samus/Zelda fanfiction I take upon myself to fix that. With that enjoy lovely readers.**_

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Chapter 1 Game Set

The purple wired framed man jumped dodging another blast of magic fire. Zelda huffed, cursing the electronic man. The Princess, soon to be Queen of Hyrule drew her power again, sending fire racing towards the fake human. Quickly it dodged out of the way again bringing out another curse from Zelda.

The sound of laughter brought Zelda's attention away from the wired framed man. Link, Zelda's best friend and Hero of Time, was leaning against the wall of the training room snickering. He grinned goofily when Zelda sent a glare at him.

"What? Come on it's kind of funny. I mean its not even set on attack mode!" Link said referring to the wired framed man. It was a training dummy of sorts. Able to act like an average opponent, allowing people to train their skills against it. It also let one program it to fight how the user wanted.

Zelda's eyebrow twitched in irritation, turning back to the dummy she gathered her power for another attack. A blast of fire rocketed forth, slamming into the dummy at full force sending it flying.

"Nice! That's the kind of stuff that will get you the knock-outs!" The Hero encouraged looking rather pleased at the power Zelda displayed.

The Smash Tournament was going to begin in a few weeks. A fighting competition that crossed dimensions bringing fighters from anywhere and everywhere. To find out who was the strongest of them all. This was the second tournament, the first Zelda didn't compete in. Link however did earning second place in the tournament. Making him all the more eager to come out on top for the second time around, and when Zelda too received an invitation to compete. The Hero was practically dragging Zelda out of the castle to go.

Now since they arrived in Smash City, a pocket like dimension where the city full of residents from every world gathered for the tournament. Link spent his time helping Zelda get ready for the tournament. Seeing as Zelda didn't fight often, it would be useful to practice up before the real fighting began.

"It's a good thing we arrived early its certainly been awhile since I've used my magic to this level." The Princess sighed as the holographic man disappeared from its collapsed position by the wall. Before reappearing perfectly fine standing in front of Zelda.

"You are getting better though. Certainly not Smash level, but you are getting better." Link pushed himself off the wall coming to stand next to Zelda.

"Why thank you Link. You know, some might consider it a grave offense to insult your Princess." The Hero grinned at the jab, sarcasm dripping from Zelda's voice. Ever since Link returned from his adventure in Termina. The two became as close as could be, some back in Hyrule debated whether they were more than friends or not. However, Link's heart was held by another, and as Link often joked Zelda was married to her country.

"Hey it would be a greater offense to lie to her majesty." Zelda laughed, then she turned her attention back to the training dummy.

"There must be somthing to this. Either I'm not fast enough, or something else…" The Princess trailed off, her mind trying to work out what was making her miss so often. Link chuckled at his friend, she didn't get the triforce of wisdom for nothing. The Princess' greatest weapon was her mind, Link just had to get her using it in a fight.

"You're thinking too much on it. You've got to be able to predict where they're going to dodge, instead of just focusing on getting that first strike out. Usually you're going to miss the first shot, its your follow up attack that matters." Link explained stepping forward, pulling out his boomerang.

"Watch," the dummy prepared itself sensing Link entering the battle. Link flung the boomerang as soon as he let it go he pulled out his bow. The dummy went to dodge out of the way of boomerang, but as it sprang to the left an arrow was sent flying. The arrow flew to the dummy who was helpless as it burrowed deep into its head. The holographic dummy flickered before resetting again.

Link could see Zelda processing the information, already thinking of how to incorporate it for her own attacks. A flame came to life in Zelda's palm, the dummy readied itself. A blast of fire came rushing towards the dummy, but this fire was weaker than her last attempts. Allowing her to send another blast quickly nailing the dummy as it dodged right into her second attack.

"Nice!" Link grinned upon seeing Zelda land her attack.

"Keep that up and you'll be a force to be reckoned with!" Zelda smiled nodding gratefully, happy at her own success.

"Well, it helps when the Hero of Time is instructing you." Link scratched the back of his head laughing. He was rather modest when it came to his heroic accomplishments. Though he saved both Hyrule and Termina, at heart he remain the young boy who grew up in the Kokiri Forest.

"Ha, I might regret it later when you know all my moves. Just remember if we fight in the tournament no way I'm going easy on you!"

"Still bitter after last time?" Zelda laugh at Link's expression, the hero had told Zelda all about his first time in the Smash tournament. From what Link had told her in the final match the battle was brutal, but in the end Link was bested by a warrior called Samus Aran.

"I am not bitter! There is just no way I'm losing to that crazy robot again!"Zelda gave Link an amused look, folding her arms over her chest.

"The very crude drawings on the targets back in Hyrule say otherwise." Link's face colored red from blushing. He didn't think Zelda ever went down to the training grounds back at the castle.

"Well...got to motivate myself, shooting bland targets gets boring." The Hero shrugged grinning sheepishly.

"I'll remember that if I ever get discouraged. I'll just draw rude pictures of my enemies to feel better." Huffing Link took a few steps back taking a defensive stance.

"You're going to need to make a few then, because let's practice your hand to hand." Zelda grimaced, magic was her main way of offense hand to hand combat was something entirely new to her. Usually she would transform into her other form Sheik, but Link insisted she at least be decent in her normal state. Zelda mirrored Link's stance and readied herself, preparing to no doubt take a few blows.

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By the time they were finished Zelda was panting heavily, her entire body felt numb not used to being this active. Link too looked tired, but the blonde only took a few deep breaths before his breathing leveled out again.

"I have to admit you're not doing so bad. You just have to work on your stamina a bit. These fights can last for ages, and you don't want to lose just because you ran out of steam." The blonde looked amused as Zelda only appeared slightly pleased, too tired to respond. After a moment Zelda managed to breath at least somewhat steadily.

"I think I'll stick to using Sheik for close combat." The Princess uttered obviously still trying to gather herself. It was a surprise that Zelda was invited to the fighting tournament, so to say she was out of practice was an understatement. The Hyrulian monarch just hoped she could get back up to speed in time for the fighting to begin.

"Might be a good plan it will certainly be a surprise to any opponent." Link went over to a their things sitting by the exit. Grabbing a towel the Hero wiped the sweat from his face. Following him over Zelda stretched her already sore muscles, rolling her shoulders trying to will some of the aches away.

"I think a break is due," Zelda stated noticing Link also looked rather tired. Although he would ever admit it, Link like Zelda had become complacent since the end of their adventure. With Ganondorf defeated Hyrule was at peace. The most fighting the blonde swordsman got into was against the stalchildern that spawned at nightfall in Hyrule Field. The two gathered their things and headed out of the training building.

Subspace or Smash City was a fully functioning city with towering skyscrapers, small apartments, and various stores owned by many different beings. The Master Hand, the creator of the city, created a dimension entirely for the purpose of housing the city. According to what Link had heard Master Hand wanted to hold the ultimate fighting tournament. Where the best of each dimension from Hyrule to the Mushroom Kingdom would compete at the chance for glory. Of course there was a cash prize, but from what Link had experienced few were competing just for the money.

Zelda had to admit the city was a sight to behold. Since Hyrule was farther behind in technology everything was completely new to the Princess. As they walked down the street Zelda admired the towering buildings with their many windows that seemed to dazzle in the midday sun. The city seemed to be buzzing with the tournament so close to beginning.

They stopped at a simple cafe that Link said he frequented last tournament. Zelda took a seat in a booth next to the window enjoying the atmosphere, while Link went to get them something. There were a few others relaxing in the cafe's comfortable aurora. Beings that Zelda had never seen before. Two short people with what looked like mushrooms on their heads sat together at a small circular table. What looked like knight with armor Zelda couldn't place sat alone by the far window, sipping their drink. A couple of men in high tech metal armor chatted together happily at another booth. The blonde could almost make out a symbol emblazoned on their armor, but the shape was foreign to her.

The bell connected to the door chimed indicating someone entering the shop. Zelda glanced at the door, and at first glance Zelda thought it was a robot entering the cafe. Though when Zelda thought on it, they could be. The being entering the shop was tall no doubt taller than Zelda if she were standing. With metal armor that looked stronger than steel, oddly though at least to Zelda the armor was a bright orange. Except the chest and helmet that were a vibrant red. One arm was encased in what looked like a verdant colored gun, and almost jet like boosters were on their back. They must have noticed Zelda looking them over, because a chartreuse visor turned its gaze the princess' way. The visor was blank if there was someone inside no one would be able to read anything from them.

Zelda quickly looked away feeling rather foolish. Most took staring as an insult, and the last thing Zelda wanted to do was offend someone. Especially her first few days in. Being a princess Zelda was taught even the simplest of gestures, like staring could be a great offense in another culture. It was times like this Zelda remembered her days learning proper etiquette from her teacher, as not to offend anyone as Queen of Hyrule.

The Princess could feel the cool gaze on her for another moment before it turned away. The armored being continued about its business just as Link returned with two sandwiches and drinks for them. Link too was looking at the newcomer, but he had a competitive glare about him.

"Are they one of our competition?" Zelda questioned lowly so the being of discussion wouldn't hear. Link huffed giving his attention back to Zelda.

"Yah, that's Samus, told you crazy robot." Link took a bite out of his sandwich roughly sending another look at the warrior that had defeated him last tournament.

Curiously Zelda looked to Samus again. The warrior had gone to the counter no doubt to order something. They must have been here often like Link, because the cashier didn't even need to ask if the warrior wanted anything. The metal clad fighter merely gave the employee their money with a grateful nod. The blank visor caught Zelda once again giving the princess a glance as if to say 'I see you, now stop'.

Link chuckled upon seeing Zelda flush at being caught staring. Zelda gave the Hero an angry glare before focusing on her meal. Samus eventually received their drink and a small bag containing some form of pastry. Then they left with only the metal clink of armored boots giving them away.

Since Samus was the reason Link lost the last tournament, it was a rather sore topic for the Hero. Too bad for him though Zelda was more than willing get a little fun out of his bruised ego.

"Are you going to pout every time you see Samus, because I don't think that's a very efficient way to defeat them." Link glared at the ruler of Hyrule.

"What?" Zelda smiled innocently while the Hero let out a huff.

"I don't care that much…" A disbelieving look from Zelda stopped that statement flat. "Okay I do care, but its not some stupid grudge because it beat me. Samus never spoke one word to any of us back in the first tournament, not one. And during fights it was insane it's like they were a killing machine." Link paused for a second trying to put his thoughts into words.

"I guess you could say I'm worried what a insane robot like that is up to in their own dimension." Zelda smiled gently at her friend. Link truly lived up to his name of hero, even for people he wasn't even sure existed. Though his intentions were good at heart it wasn't fair to Samus. Neither of them really knew the warrior, so they had no right to pass judgement upon them.

"We know nothing about Samus, and have no right to judge them. You aren't even sure if Samus is a robot." The Princess calmly reminded the Hero, sounding every bit of the royal she was. Link rolled his eyes however.

"Zelda, you just saw it! If that's not a robot…" The Princess cut him off.

"Link, unless you have solid proof that they are a robot, we should assume they're not." Zelda admonished, though Link could very well be right, and Samus was a great villain in their universe. Zelda however was not able to pass such a label on someone she had not met yet. As a ruler she had to be both suspicious and forgiving of everyone. By principal Zelda would wait until she knew more before deciding.

"That's your job to be kind and forgiving to everyone, don't drag me into it. I am going to stick to what I've seen, and I've seen a robot beat people into the ground. Trust me on this one Zelda, pray to the goddesses that you don't have a match against Samus early on in the tournament." Zelda shook her head in exasperation, Link clearly wasn't changing his mind.

The topic of the mysterious metal warrior dropped, and the two enjoy their meal. Later on Link left Zelda to do his own training. Leaving Zelda to explore the city on her own. The Princess was surprised how many people recognized her. A couple of those strange short mushroom like people had stopped her asking if she was the ruler of Hyrule. Zelda even met a few natives of Hyrule a Zora and Goron, who happily gave their best wishes for Zelda in the tournament.

It was certainly interesting seeing this many beings all in one place coexisting. It was hard to believe that they all came to live here. Just because the Master Hand wished to hold a fighting tournament across dimensions. Zelda didn't put too much thought into that though, as it certainly seemed like a nice place to live.

While walking down the street taking in all the sight's. Zelda's eyes' caught sight of a flash of orange and red. Looking across the road Zelda spotted the high tech warrior. Samus was standing outside a strange red building with a symbol that looked like a ball split into two colors printed on the building. The building's doors slide open and two small creatures trotted out. One matched the description of Pikachu a creature Link told Zelda about. A yellow mouse like being that was known as a pokemon. From what Zelda had learned from Link there were hundreds of different kinds of pokemon. The smaller creature that follow Pikachu Zelda could only assume was a pokemon as well. Like Pikachu it had yellow fur and reminded Zelda of a mouse.

The two pokemon perked up immediately upon seeing Samus.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu exclaimed jumping onto Samus' shoulder nuzzling the warrior's helmet. The smaller pokemon hopped over hugging the warrior's leg barely reaching over their knee. Pikachu jumped back onto the ground looking rather happy at seeing Samus.

The high-tech warrior handed a paper bag that Zelda recognized as the one they purchased at the cafe. The pokemon made several noises of glee digging into the bag. Pikachu pulled out a fluffy looking pastry handing it to the other pokemon, before pulling out one of their own.

"Chuuuu!" Small sparks came from Pikachu's cheeks in happiness thanking the warrior. Samus gave a small nod to the pokemon, as if saying it was nothing.

Not wanting to get caught watching the warrior again. Zelda continued on her way, smiling to herself. This tournament was bound to be interesting, but even if Zelda didn't win. She could at least say Link was wrong.

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 _ **A.N. Hope that wasn't too terrible I have a good five chapters of this ready to go. This is going to be sort of slow burn for the romance, because I don't see Samus or Zelda as the kind of people to rush into a relationship. On that final note reviews are loved see you guys later^_^.**_


	2. Heavy Hitter

_**A.N. Quick note to any readers though the Zelda in this story is the one from Ocarina of Time I'm going with the Twilight Princess design of her, so that would be why Zelda's hair will be brown instead of blonde. Just a quick heads up so there isn't any confusion enjoy^^.**_

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Chapter 2 Heavy Hitter

Excitement was in the air as the Smash contestants waited for Master Hand to address them. Some time had passed since Link and Zelda had been training that day. All the other fighters had arrived bringing a new level of excitement to the city. The citizens were hanging banners displaying which fighter they supported. Anticipation was high as the tournament came to a start.

Meeting all the fighters had certainly been an experience for Zelda. Back in Hyrule Zelda had knowledge of all the races that inhabited the world, and knew what to expect from each of them. Here they were all from completely different worlds. Where for all Zelda knew could be completely backwards from what the norm in Hyrule was. The fighters from the Mushroom Kingdom seemed friendly enough. Princess Peach had already invited Zelda for tea, and though intimidating at first with a quick glare from Peach. The King of Koopas Bowser remained civil. The Pokemon Pikachu and Pichu were excitable little creatures that seemed ecstatic to be there for the tournament. Zelda had still yet to met the rest of the contestants.

Link had struck up a friendship with Marth and Roy. The three bonded over their sword fighting, and quickly gained a strong respect for their heroic accomplishments.

"I wonder what the first rounds are going to be like?" Link wondered aloud as he stood next to Zelda and Marth. Having already participated in the tournament Link knew somewhat to expect, but the Master Hand might have changed things for this year's tournament. The tournament itself lasted nearly an entire year. Consisting of three main rounds of fighting. With a brief break in between, so that the fighters could return to their home dimensions.

Zelda remembered that year well when Link was participating in the first tournament. Zelda had few she could consider actual friends being the ruler of kingdom. To say the least, it was a long year without her friend.

"What did the Master Hand do last tournament?" Marth questioned the Hero of Time, looking to the giant flatscreen with interest. Master Hand had gathered the fighters in the main lobby of the warp zone. The building that would transport the contestants to wherever they had to fight.

"He started us out on one on one, best of of three. If you lost then in the second round you have to face up against the other losers, and if you lost there you were out." Marth nodded in understanding keeping his gaze on the monitor.

Zelda ildy looked around lobby. Link and Marth had become deep in talking about Link's time in the last tournament. Eyes flicking around the room Zelda came upon a familiar figure. Samus was leaning back against the far wall. Green visor hiding any form of emotion the robot like warrior might have. Glancing back at Link and Marth then back to Samus, Zelda moved towards the warrior.

That empty visor stared at Zelda once it realized she was approaching. Zelda smiled politely.

"Hello, we saw each other earlier this week. I wanted to apologize for staring, your armor is nothing like what we have in my world. I hope I didn't insult you." Samus observed the Princess for a moment. Almost like the warrior was processing or judging Zelda's apology. After another moment the helmeted head nodded holding out their hand.

Zelda smiled glad the warrior was not insulted. She took the offered hand, surprised how gentle the warrior was when shaking her hand.

"Thank you, I am Zelda, Princess of Hyrule. You're Samus correct?" Zelda had already picked up that she would be hard pressed to get a word out of Samus, so she gave her the option to remain silent. The warrior seemed grateful. Their postured seemed to become less tense, relaxing their guard by just a fraction.

Samus nodded confirming their identity. Before Zelda could ask anything else the flat screen monitor flashed alive. Depicting an empty fighting bracket, a deep voice followed.

"Welcome to the second official Smash tournament! We have some new faces joining the melee, as well as some old returning. You are here to prove you are the best your universe has to offer! The tournament will consist of three main rounds. The first will begin at the end of the week. This will be your last chance to drop out, and return to your home dimension." There were several shouts of protest at the notion, before the Master Hand continued.

"Our first round will be team fighting two on two. Your teammate will appear on the screen shortly, along with your first matchup. They will be your teammate for the remainder of the first round." The screen flashed before images of the fighters filled the bracket. At the bottom showed the first fights that would occur at the end of the week. Zelda found her picture at the bottom of the bracken her teammate's image next to her. The Princess smiled looking to the robot like warrior. Samus' image was paired next to Zelda's making them teammates for the first round.

"It would be an honor to fight with you Samus." The Princess gave a polite bow, Zelda could almost sense an eyebrow being raised by the warrior under the helmet.

The warrior gave a firm nod, though they didn't show any other opinion towards being teamed with Zelda. The Princess hoped Samus had no ill feelings towards the idea. It would defiantly make the coming rounds difficult if they couldn't cooperate properly.

The first fight would occur at the end of the week. Looking at the bracket Zelda noted their first fight would be the second one on Friday. The first match would be Princess Peach and Captain Falcon vs. Fox and Kirby. Samus and Zelda would be fighting after that against Mario and Bowser.

Zelda felt a metal hand gently tap her shoulder. She looked over to see Samus gesturing towards the door.

"Do you want me to come with you?" The helmet nodded before Samus took a step towards the door, pausing to see if Zelda was following. The Princess was so the metal clad warrior lead Zelda out of the lobby.

Following Samus out onto the street Zelda briefly thought on how this could possibly be a bad idea. She knew nothing of Samus' character, and the warrior could easily be leading Zelda away from the others to attack her. Zelda seriously doubted that, but when one was a ruler it paid to be overly cautious. Though for whatever reason Zelda felt she could trust Samus. The warrior had this honorable air about them. Link had a similar aura about him. He was a hero, and every fiber of his being spoke it. Perhaps Samus was a hero in their world too? The Princess mentally laughed at what Link's reaction would be to the idea that Samus was a hero. He would no doubt refuse to believe it.

The green visor glanced back to see if Zelda was still there. Zelda gave a polite smile moving to walk next to the warrior. Samus didn't seem to mind continuing to lead them to their destination.

Soon the familiar training building came into view. Zelda's quick mind already thinking of a reason Samus would bring her here.

"You want to see my skills in combat?" The Princess asked already getting the hang of giving Samus the option to non verbally answer her. The red helmet nodded confirming Zelda's thought. The Princess felt her nerves sneak up on her. From what Link said Samus was an impressive fighter, the best winning the last tournament. The Hyrule ruler may be hard pressed to impress someone as skilled as Samus was. Zelda was determined though, and didn't show any signs of nervousness.

The training room they entered was exactly the same as the one Zelda and Link had been practicing in. Plain walls covered in hard looking tiles that covered the floor as well. The tiles were used to display the holographic training dummies, or any other obstacles someone wanted. The only fixture in the room was a control panel on the far wall that controlled the holographic tiles.

Samus strode over to the other side of the room, turning back to face Zelda. Before the Princess' eyes the verdant cannon attached to their arm glowed reforming into an armored hand mirroring the other. Samus took a fighting stance fists raised. Zelda readied herself studying the warrior before her with calculating eyes.

"Are there any conditions to this fight?" A shake of the helmet was her answer.

"Whenever you're ready then," Zelda said sounding very polite despite the fact that they were about to fight.

The armored body charged at her with the force of a train springing forward fist raised. Zelda jumped to the right as Samus' fist crashed into the ground with a bang. Cracks in the tile were clear as day from the force Samus exerted. Zelda observed silently the warrior was testing her, gauging her strategy, would she dodge or face her head on. The robot came at her again this time in a much more controlled fashion. Samus was quick but Zelda was smaller weighted down less letting her dodge Samus punches, but with no small effort on her part.

Zelda didn't retaliate yet. While training it was something Link and her discovered about Zelda in a fight. Though Zelda's sharp mind could act quickly if needed, they discovered Zelda fought best by waiting, dodging, assessing the fight, waiting for the perfect moment to strike for maximum damage. It worked well since the Princess' lithe form could move fairly quickly, and dodge with relative ease. Even Link when sparing had trouble landing a hit on the ruler.

Samus tried to use her leg to sweep Zelda's feet out from under her. The Princess jumped avoiding the hit while Samus was bringing her self back to center Zelda saw her moment. Din's fire erupted in her hands blasting down at Samus. The warrior got their arms up to block the brunt of it, but at so close a range Zelda could see the smallest stagger in the warrior's step. Samus left no room for any small victory though, and charged again at Zelda like nothing had happened.

The punches were coming faster now, and Zelda struggled to dodge them all. Zelda could only assume in between dodges that Samus was slowly building up to their true skills. Fatigue was already clawing at Zelda, the Princess knew she couldn't keep this up much longer. Eyes narrowing Zelda called upon Nayru's power spinning around a diamond shape crystal shielded Zelda, knocking Samus back. With Samus back Zelda summon her magic again this time though warmth flooded Zelda's body.

Within seconds the Princess was no more, and the slim sheikah Sheik took her place. Samus seemed to care little at this change in form, and came at her again. Sheik however dodge the punch sending one of her own back only to be blocked herself.

This continued a stalemate of trading blows. Sheik seemed to be making barely a dent, the metal armor protecting the warrior wonderfully. Jumping up quickly Sheik hopped on Samus' head using the warrior as a spring to get away. Sheik intended to trying throwing several needles to see how well Samus would hold against that, but as she sprung away Samus reached up taking hold of her ankle.

Sheik could almost hear her spine crack as she was slammed onto the ground. Before she knew it a heavy foot crashed onto her chest, and a great force was landed right beside her head. The force and pain forced Sheik to phase back into the Zelda at some point after impact. When the Princess opened her eyes blearily Samus was kneeling on top of her. Their fist smashed into the ground centimeters from Zelda's head. Zelda could vaguely hear the ground crumbling as the fist shifted.

Green visor stared at Zelda blankly, distantly as if Samus was processing their victory. Then the metal warrior snapped back, removing their fist, and getting off Zelda. The brunette coughed her lungs relieved to have the weight removed.

"I guess you win…" Zelda panted closing her eyes again adrenaline leaving her. The Princess' body ached already feeling the bruising forming on her back and chest.

Zelda startled when cool metal hands lifted her up into a sitting position. The metal clad warrior looked like they were about to pick Zelda up, no doubt to take her to a infirmary. The Princess shrugged away the hands.

"I'm all right just winded. You're an extremely skilled opponent Samus." The robot like warrior didn't seemed to care about the compliment, and was more concerned for Zelda's health. The green visor seemed to be glowing brighter than before, and Zelda could feel if there were eye's under the helmet they were looking her over.

Zelda got up carefully Samus observed appearing ready at any moment to catch her should she fall. The Princess had to stop herself from chuckling out loud. This was the cold blooded robot that Link lost to. Sure during the fight Samus was frighteningly powerful now however. The killer robot as Link claimed was protectively hovering closely to Zelda incase she was injured more severely.

The unspoken question was clearly presented by Samus, green visor fixed on Zelda still aglow.

"I'm fine Samus if I wasn't prepared to take a few hits, then I wouldn't have joined the tournament." The blank visor remained fixed before the glow faded from the visor. Samus nodded whatever the warrior did with its helmet, or perhaps Zelda's words seemed to convince the warrior finally. Zelda smiled glad to have calmed the metal clad warrior's nerves.

"I hope I didn't disappoint, I'll admit I'm not much of fighter. I mostly spend my time battling my court." Samus' head shook hand raising the warrior gestured a three with their fingers.

"Three?" Zelda hummed thinking a moment before continuing. "Out of...Five?" The Princess guessed, Samus nodded then giving a quick thumbs up. Zelda grinned admitting to herself Samus' gestures were mildly amusing. Something told her though the warrior would not appreciate her saying so.

Samus grading her fighting to be decent was an accomplishment Zelda hoped. A warrior of Samus skilled knew fighting like the back of their hand, and no doubt knew skill when the emotionless visor saw it. It also gave Zelda an idea of how much improvement she needed. The Princess wasn't so vain to not admit dueling people with words was her domain, beating people and slaying monsters was not the Princess's forte.

The arm that once had the cannon attached to it glowed again, and reformed to become the weapon. Samus turned their attention back to Zelda visor aglow once more.

"I am fine Samus I'll get some rest, and be as good as gold come Friday." The visor returned to normal but remained gazing at Zelda. The Princess stared down the visor feeling whatever was beneath it gazing right back at her. The warrior broke the contact nodding firmly. Samus reached out their metal hand which Zelda took in a firm shake.

"Well fought to you as well," the Princess grinned.


	3. A Bad Feeling

_**A.N I'd like to thank the lovely people who reviewed the last two chapters. You guys are awesome and make me all the more determined to work on this story with that enjoy the next chapter^^**_

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Chapter 3 A Bad Feeling

"I'm going to slice that robot in half!" Zelda rubbed her temples at Link's shout. Her body ached from her fight with Samus earlier, and the weary Princess was in no mood for the Hero's rantings.

"For the third time Link we were practicing. If we are going to be teammates we needed to see how the other fights." The brunette calmly stated despite her annoyance.

"Practicing doesn't involve spine breaking!" Link accused eyes burning at this attack on the Princess. Zelda sighed, while she did try to return to the small home Link and Zelda were provided to live at. A certain green visor had glared at her till the Princess relented, and visited an infirmary.

Despite Link's claim Zelda only received some rather painful bruising from Samus slamming her to the ground. Which now the Princess nursed with ice packs while laying on the couch in the living area of their small home trying to relax.

"Link, you will leave Samus be." Zelda commanded tiredly not having the energy to argue further. Link collapsed onto the far end of the couch leaning back with a huff.

"Crazy robot nearly breaks your back, and you won't let me retaliate. I'm glad I'm not a member of the royal guard back home. You must be a pain in the ass to protect." Zelda chuckled closing her eyes happy Link has relented. The Hero sighed glancing at the royal before looking out the window distantly.

"You had me worried, you disappeared after the teammate announcements. Then turn up all beat up. I'm sorry, I guess I'm just being overprotective huh?" Link scratched the back of his head. Zelda sat up placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"No more so than usual. I can handle myself, but it never hurts to have my friend backing me up. You have nothing to worry from Samus though. I genuinely believe they mean no harm to anyone. If Samus wanted to kill me I'm certain they could have done it." Link groaned covering his face with his hands, collapsing back into the couch.

"There you go again sounding all wisdomy!" Zelda huffed giving Link a mock scowl.

"Well, I do have the Triforce of Wisdom…"

"Nah, you'd sound like that even if you didn't have the Triforce." Link shrugged cutting off Zelda. The Princess merely sighed shaking her head, before Link became serious.

"I'll trust that you trust Samus, but promise if you have any issues you'll ask me." A fair compromise since it was unlikely Link was going to believe Samus was okay. Zelda nodded answering before laying back down.

"I promise." This seemed to satisfy the blonde, which Zelda was grateful for. She was too exhausted to argue. Zelda let her head fall back into the couch, closing her eyes.

The next day Zelda's muscles ached horribly. Her fight with Samus was twice the effort of the sparing Link and her did. Though Zelda cared for Link deeply the blonde irritated her to no end with his protectiveness sometimes. Zelda may be the Princess, but she was far from helpless. Link seems to forget Zelda was there with him during the fight with Ganondorf, and she survived years on her own as Sheik. During the time Link slumbered in the Temple of Time.

Zelda understood Link just wanted to watch her back, as any friend would. That didn't mean it didn't get annoying at times. So, today even at Link's protests that she should rest Zelda strolled through the city. Figuring staying active would help her body become accustomed to the strain of fighting.

While casually walking down the neatly paved street Zelda's heart went cold. Rushing out of sight before he saw her Zelda moved quickly, hiding in the small crowd of pedestrians passing by. Ganondorf the dark hearted Gerudo King and wielder of the triforce of power was across the street. Zelda and Link heard rumors around the city that the Gerudo King would be joining the tournament, but Zelda would have hoped he wouldn't be allowed due to being sealed away by the sages.

Ganondorf was just as the Princess remembered him. A giant intimidating man with a dark aurora constantly following him, as if warning the world of his horrid goals of destruction and death. Zelda didn't want to take a chance with Ganondorf alone. She knew it was possible now she may have to face him in the tournament, but at least in the tournament if Ganondorf tried anything there were dozens of heroes around that could step up to stop him.

Zelda slowly started to creep away keeping her eyes on Ganondorf. Before Zelda could make an escape her back bumped into someone, making the Princess spin around to see who she ran into.

The brunette let out a soft sigh of relief, and smiled at the figure before her. Green visor looking down at her Samus appeared just as they've for the last few days. Metal armor, arm cannon at the ready, and expressionless helmet looking blankly at Zelda.

"Sorry Samus," snapping back to focus Zelda remembered the reason she bumped into Samus in the first place. The Princess spun back around to see if Ganondorf was still there. He was he didn't seem to notice Zelda yet though. Across the street he was looking into one of the windows of the various shops.

Jumping when she felt a cold hand tap her shoulder Zelda looked to the metal warrior. Samus was looking at her, helmet slightly tilted as if saying 'What's wrong?'. Zelda looked at Ganondorf again taking Samus' hand the warrior willingly followed Zelda into a nearby book shop. Once she was safely away from the villain's sight Zelda let out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about that Samus I didn't want that man across the street seeing me." Samus took a glance out the window spying Ganondorf easily.

"He tried to take over my world. I hope Master Hand keeps him in check. Ganondorf will stop at nothing to destroy Link and I." The arm cannon seemed to twitch when Zelda mentioned Ganon wanting to destroy her and Link. There was no other response to what Zelda had said though. Red helmet tilted again prompting Zelda to explain further. At least that's what Zelda believed Samus meant. It was hard to tell when Samus stayed so silent, and the helmet obscured any emotion that might be under it.

"Ganondorf in my world wants to take the pieces of the Triforce Link and I have. He already has one and if he gained all three he would become all powerful." The Princess explained giving the most streamlined version she could. Samus nodded in understanding leaning to take another glance out the window. Ganondorf was gone. The warrior pointed outside signaling Zelda that Ganondorf had moved elsewhere out of sight.

"Thank the goddesses." Zelda's relief was short lived though as the bell to the book store's door chimed. Entering was the King of Gerudos himself dark eyes scanning the room stopping upon seeing Zelda and Samus.

Zelda tensed, willing her magic to the surface ready for a fight. Ganondorf approached them a disturbing air of confidence about him. He walked over with a dark smirk on his face.

"Princess Zelda, don't you have a kingdom to rule. It would be horrible if something were to happen while you were off playing warrior." Zelda quirked an eyebrow still ready in case things turned violent. The Triforce of Wisdom's power resonating within her sensing the other piece within Ganondorf.

"Couldn't the same be said for you King Ganondorf of Gerudo Valley." The barb back didn't seem to phase the King. Instead he just continued to smirk at Zelda.

"Heh, my people don't need a babysitter to tell them what to do. As much as I love talking with you 'your majesty'. You're not the reason I'm here." Zelda was about to say something when Ganondorf turned to the armored warrior. Samus up until now had stood silently observing the events before them. Ganondorf stared at the warrior sizing them up. Ganondorf's dark gaze didn't phase the robot like warrior in the least however.

"Samus Aran the greatest bounty hunter in your dimension I presume?" Zelda didn't have the time to ponder the new information Ganondorf has relieved about Samus, as the King continued a devious smile on his face.

"I wish to speak with you privately if I may?" The false politeness Ganondorf spoke with caused a shiver to go down Zelda's spine. It was the same tone Ganondorf had used with the previous King of Hyrule, before he showed his true colors. Memories of the flames of Hyrule burning flashed through Zelda's mind. The day Ganondorf took over the land was forever imprinted in Zelda's mind.

Samus merely gazed at the King for moment, visor giving off nothing on how the hunter felt towards Ganondorf. Eventually though Samus nodded. Zelda was about to protest, warn Samus that Ganondorf could not be trusted, but the metal warrior turned their gaze on Zelda. The Princess quieted she didn't know how, but Samus seemed to have a talent for saying much with just a glance. Though Zelda knew all too well how powerful Ganondorf was Samus' bright visor told her the hunter would be fine. Zelda nodded leaving Samus with the King of Gerudo, no matter the horrid feeling left within her.

* * *

The glare Ganondorf received was oh so satisfying to the Gerudo King. After all that royal brat and kokiri runt put him through. Ganondorf was glad to make the Princess sweat thinking about what he was planning.

The metal clad bounty hunter Samus Aran had followed him without a word. Whether it was because they were confident enough in their skills to protect themself, or pure foolishness Ganondorf didn't know nor care. The hunter should count themself lucky he was in need of their skills, or else he could very well be leading them to their death.

As soon as Ganondorf had arrived to this Subspace he found out as much as he could about the competition. To the Gerudo King's delight he had found exactly who he could use to further his goals in Samus Aran. He had watched the archived videos of their match against Link.

The hunter had defeated the would be hero to the great pleasure of Ganondorf. Watching the runt fall Ganon began to plan. It was when Ganondorf had come across some drunk soldiers at a bar that he knew he could use Samus to finally get what was his. The soldiers of some Galactic Federation that Ganondorf care little about told of Samus in great detail. They spoke of a hardened bounty hunter that killed as easily as they breathed. An undefeated warrior of unimaginable skills known throughout their realm.

Bounty hunters weren't that common in Hyrule. There were a few mercenaries here and there, but Ganondorf never had use of them with his legion of minions at his command. Ganondorf did know though that bounty hunters would do just about anything for cash.

Looking to the hunter, strength radiated from them, so much so that even Ganondorf knew Samus was not one to be trifled with. This caused the Gerudo King to smirk. Perhaps in his current state Samus might be a threat, but once Link and Zelda were dealt with. The bounty hunter would cease to be useful, and if they became a problem they would be taken care of. Ganondorf grinned soon the triforce would be his as it was always meant to be.

Ganondorf brought Samus to an alley a little cliche, but Ganon didn't want to tip off any of the other heroes fighting in the tournament. He was confidant he could handle Link and Zelda, but the King wasn't ready to deal with any wild cards at this point. The hunter was silent stopping once Ganon did, that green visor staring at him. The King of Gerudo wondered briefly what the warrior was thinking. He stopped though as it didn't matter all that mattered was that they would do Ganondorf's bidding.

"I have a job that needs done, and being a bounty hunter I would imagine you'd be interested in making some easy profit." Seamus said nothing continuing to watch the King, so Ganon continued.

"Very simply, you know Link of course, and I see you've met Princess Zelda as well. I need both of them dead." There was no reaction from Samus, and Ganondorf smirked. Clearly death was not something that affected the hunter.

"You'll be paid well of course I believe translated into you're currency the amount would be two hundred thousand credits." Ganon had done his homework snooping around to find as much about this hunter as he could. All of the original fighters seemed to fear Samus, and the people he'd managed to find from Samus' dimension spoke of their skill in great detail. They told of how Samus destroyed an entire planet killing thousands if not more on the surface before blowing it up. If Samus proved useful perhaps Ganon would offer them a place within the ranks of his minions.

Ganon was confident he offered enough money to sate the hunter's payment. Though they came from different worlds Subspace had many places where money could be converted to any kind of currency from any dimension. Ganondorf's face changed from false politeness to anger when the hunter shook their head, seemingly not interested in the job. They began to turn to leave, but Ganondorf grabbed their arm.

Before Ganondorf could make any threat or demand though a metal foot slammed into his jaw. The King staggered surprised at the strength behind the hunter's kick. They began to turn again to leave which made Ganondorf furious. It was like the hunter believe Ganondorf wasn't a threat. The King of Gerudo felt his magic bubbling to the surface from his rage. If he had to force the hunter to obey him then so be it.

* * *

The rest of Zelda's day after the encounter with Ganondorf was rather uneventful. She meet up with Princess Peach, and was cajoled into having tea with her. Peach seemed like a kind and caring person. Zelda was almost surprised she was here for a fighting tournament.

"Mario and Luigi aren't really ones for fighting either, but we all got invited so why not." Peach laughed at her own reasoning for coming to the tournament. The two royals were sitting at a small cafe at a circular table in front of the cafe outside.

"True this world is amazing even if there wasn't a tournament. This place would be worth the trip." The ruler of Hyrule noted, taking a sip of her tea. Peach smiled sweetly agreeing with the statement. Zelda looked off distantly thoughts of Ganondorf coming back to the Princess. It was obvious he was planning something to gain the triforce.

Samus was a bounty hunter, and Zelda knew now it was very possible she should be wary around the warrior now. As far as Zelda could surmise Ganondorf wished to hire Samus. Whether or not the bounty hunter accepted Zelda did not know, or if they did accept. Should Zelda expect to be shot down by the metal warrior? A troubling thought.

"You look troubled Zelda is something wrong?" Peach asked looking concerned at the ruler of Hyrule. Zelda snapped from her thoughts she had been completely lost in her musings.

"I'm sorry Peach I tend to get lost in my own thoughts." Zelda apologized, smiling sheepishly. The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom waved her off still looking concerned.

"It's no problem what's wrong, if you don't mind me asking?" The brunette frowned not wanting to trouble someone with her problems.

"I wouldn't want to bother you we only just met…"

"Nope! You're not pulling the we just met card on me missy! On the field things can be as vicious as you'd like, but off it we're friends. Now what's wrong?" Zelda was surprised how Peach shot down Zelda attempt to not share her problem. The ruler of Hyrule sighed.

"Do you know of Ganondorf?" Zelda asked.

"Not really he is from your world right?" The brunette nodded taking a sip of her tea before continuing.

"To put it simply in my world there is something call the Triforce. Three pieces left by our goddesses that united can grant someone's wish. Ganondorf wishes to gained all three to decimate the world. He has one, Link and I have the other two." The ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom looked troubled by this. It was obvious not just anyone should have that kind of power.

"I take it he can't just take them from you two." Peach grimaced as Zelda frowned.

"It's possible he could, but Ganon would kill us just for existing anyway. Us having the Triforce is just one more reason to destroy us." Memories of the final battle against Ganon flashed through the Princess' mind. The monstrous beast he transformed into in a last ditch attempt to kill Link.

"Is that what you're worried about? Him being in the tournament? You think he'll try something?" Peach seemed horrified that such an act as cruel as murder would occur here.

"Not out right but I know he's up to something. Ganondorf is smart enough to know the heros here would stop him. He's trying something else I'm sure. You know of Samus too correct?" The blonde nodded looking worried.

"The scary robot they're kinda hard to miss. Mario told me Samus won the tournament last time."

"Samus is apparently a bounty hunter in their world, and Ganondorf wanted to talk 'privately' with them." Ganondorf no doubt was mocking Zelda by displaying his plan so openingly. It made the Princess all the more worried. If Ganon was this confidant in his plan, then there was definitely cause for concern.

"You think Ganondorf is hiring Samus to attack you?" Peach confirmed a thoughtful look on her face.

"I'm certain Ganon has asked something of them. If Samus has agreed is what I'm worried for." Zelda grimaced her muscles throbbed as if reminding her of the risk of crossing Samus.

"I wouldn't be worried." The princess of Hyrule did a double take, completely shocked at Peach's dismal of Zelda's concerns.

"What? Why? One doesn't employ a bounty hunter, unless they want someone dead." Peach smiled sipping her own tea.

"I haven't really talked to Samus much, but clearly they're a more action over words kind of person." Zelda withheld a chuckle, saying Samus valued words little was an understatement. The Princess has still yet to hear even the slightest grunt from the hunter.

"If Samus wanted you gone you'd probably know it." The blonde princess shrugged. "I might be wrong though. I tend to see the best in everyone even those of less moral standing. Look at Bowser he may seem rather mean, but he's actually rather sweet. Some people are just a little rough on the outside, but they're the ones that always have the biggest hearts." Peach laughed at her belief, assuming Zelda must find it very naive of the blonde princess. Zelda smiled instead feeling a little better with Peach's kind words.

"Very insightful Peach maybe you should hold the Triforce of Wisdom. Perhaps I am worrying over nothing." Peach giggled girlishly taking another drink of her tea.

"Just think Zelda if Samus truly insteads you harm on Ganondorf's behalf. The most he can offer is money. Just be Samus' friend, and give them a reason to not hurt you. After all friends are worth far more than gold." Zelda couldn't help but laugh at Peach's simple solution to her problem.

"Now I'm convinced, you should have the Triforce of Wisdom."

* * *

 _ **A.N. I must say Peach is fun to write. I'd imagine she has a positive outlook on everything, and sees the best in everyone.**_

 _ **On a side note though, its debatable whether Zelda would remember the fight with Ganondorf during the final battle of OOT. Since Link was sent back in time and re-met her at the end of Ocarina of Time. I'm just going to assume she can since there would be no reason for Zelda to go to the Smash tournament then. Since she'd probably not be much of a fighter without the threat of Ganondorf.**_

 _ **With that final note see you guys next chapter, reviews are loved.^^**_


	4. Broken Silence

_**A.N Sorry for the delay on this one party people. I just got Hyrule Warriors and my life has been absorbed. Thankfully though before getting it i have up to chapter 7 of this written. I just need to take the time to edit them. Anyway a quick thank you to all the people who reviewed last chapter. I'm so glad you're all liking the story so far. You're all so wonderful^^ So here's another chapter for you readers out there enjoy:D**_

* * *

Chapter 4 Broken Silence

Though Peach's words had soothed Zelda's mind somewhat. She was still quite worried. The single worrying thought nagged at the Princess' mind. Did Samus accept whatever Ganondorf offered the hunter? Zelda had to shake the thought away. She didn't know what became of Samus' conversation with Ganondorf, and she shouldn't assume the worst of the hunter. If the Princess did she'd be no better than those who chose to believe the rumors about them.

However, Zelda's resolution didn't stop the Princess from jumping when a cool metal hand tapped her shoulder. Today Zelda was at a local library trying to lose herself in the knowledge of other dimensions. Samus had seemed to search for her, and the hunter now stood before the Princess. Zelda closed the book she was holding. She wasn't really reading it anyway, too lost in her worried thoughts.

"Samus good to see you," there was a certain strain to Zelda's voice. The Princess mentally cursed herself for it. She didn't want Samus to know how concerned she was. The hunter did appear to pick up on Zelda's tone, and took a subtle step away from Zelda. It was almost like Samus was trying to give Zelda a comfort zone, to show they'd meant no harm.

It was then Zelda noticed Samus arm cannon was not present, and their armor seemed to have several scorch marks marring the armor. They didn't look too recent maybe scorching the armor a couple hours ago if Zelda had to guess. With their other hand free Samus used both to make a series of gestures that Zelda wasn't familiar with.

After seeing Zelda didn't understand the hunter's fists clenched in what Zelda thought was disappointment. Then it clicked in Zelda's mind, never hearing Samus' voice, and the strange hand gestures.

"You're mute?" Samus' visor gazed at Zelda before the hunter shook their hand in a kind of gesture.

"Can you speak at all?" Zelda frowned some of the rumors about Samus stemmed from them not speaking. If the hunter physically couldn't then it was all the more reason that the metal warrior shouldn't be judged.

Samus paused for a moment the helmet twitched as if they were struggling to do something.

"...N..t...re...ly." It was to Zelda's shock she heard the hunter's broken voice. It sounded painful for them to use it like their ability to speak was damaged. If Samus couldn't speak then the gestures they made must be sign language, Zelda assumed. Sadly the Princess didn't know the language, and Zelda mentally cursed since Samus obviously wanted to tell her something. While Zelda certainly didn't want Samus to cause themself pain by attempting to speak. She did wish she could understand what the hunter wanted to tell her.

"Oh! Come with me." An idea came to the royal she took Samus' hand, and the hunter followed without resistance. Moving quickly through the library Zelda brought them to the non-fiction section of the building. Glancing at the book titles as she moved Zelda eventually found what she was looking for. Grabbing a book with the title _Sign Language: The Basics_ Zelda looked back to the hunter.

Samus upon seeing the book understood Zelda's intentions. Again Samus brought their hands up ready to make the motions again. First they pointed at themself Zelda didn't even need to look at the book.

"I," Zelda confirmed, the hunter nodded. They made another hand movement slowly repeating it as Zelda leafed through the book.

"will" another nod. The hunter made a single fist shaking their head. Zelda flipped through the book until she found the diagram of the movement.

"not" Samus confirmed again. Using both hands Samus made another gesture, waiting for Zelda to find the translation.

"hurt" with a final movement Samus pointed at Zelda completing their thought.

" _I will not hurt you."_ It took a moment for it to process in the Princess' head. Samus stood waiting expressionless visor watching the Princess.

"I really am foolish sometimes. I'm sorry for thinking the worst of you." Zelda apologized, but Samus didn't seem bothered. They shook their head in a sign they didn't mind, Zelda still frowned. She let her fears of Ganondorf cloud her judgment.

"I still apologize. You have done nothing that should make think that of you. Ganondorf is a horrid man, and I let myself believe what others say about you." Again Samus didn't appeared bothered shaking their head. Zelda sighed crossing her arms over her chest giving the hunter a stern look. Samus really didn't appear to be bothered, and that only angered the Princess. No one should be used to people thinking the worst of them. Especially when the only thing they were going on was a scary good fighting skill, and a lack of speech. It was then Zelda really took a look at the damage on Samus' armor.

"Wait, did Ganon do this to you?" Zelda took a closer look at the damage and marks on the armor. They looked like burn marks possibly from magic. The hunter didn't nod or shake their head, not answering Zelda. Instead they shrugged as if the damage wasn't a big deal.

"Don't shrug, Ganondorf attacked you! Samus are you okay?" The helmet nodded, raising their hands up as if showing they were okay.

"I would ask what happened, but I don't think I have the knowledge to translate what you're saying." To Zelda's surprise Samus began signing again. The hunter gestured away outside instead of using a sign first.

"Ganon?" The Princess guessed Samus nodded, then made the sign for hurt again. Knowing Zelda would recognize the sign they previously made. Then Samus pointed at Zelda.

"Ganon hurt me? Ganondorf wanted to hurt me?" Samus shook their head pointed at themself. Before making the sign for hurt again, and pointing at Zelda.

"Ganondorf wanted you to hurt me?" The hunter nodded and Zelda couldn't help but feel touched. Ganondorf must have offered Samus no small amount of money, but the hunter refused clearly getting into a fight with the man instead.

"I can't thank you enough for not accepting Ganon's offer then, but please do not put yourself in danger on my account." Samus shrugged again nonchalantly seemingly not caring about the danger Ganon posed.

"I can handle Ganondorf on my own. I don't want you to get hurt, because of me." Zelda ordered sounding very much like the ruler she was. Though Zelda questioned her ability to take Ganon on a one on one fight. The Princess would sooner fight him alone however, than let someone get hurt on her behalf. Samus seemed to understand this and the warrior nodded.

"If Ganon confronts you again please tell me. Link and I can take care of it." Samus gave a respectful nod.

"Thank you, I'm sorry you got dragged into my world's problems." Samus shook their head. The hunter seemed to begin to sign something, but stopped upon remembering Zelda couldn't understand. This caused the Princess to frown at Samus' failed attempts to communicate.

Samus took a step away from the Princess motioning towards the library's exit.

"You have to go?" The hunter nodded beginning to turn around stopping when Zelda reaching out touching their arm.

"Thank you again Samus. I may be sounding repetitive, but I am grateful to have you as my teammate." The metal clad warrior gave a firm nod as if grateful to be teamed with the Princess as well.

* * *

It was strange Samus mused, as she left the Princess heading to the spaceport that her ship was at. The bounty hunter couldn't remember the last time someone thanked her for something. Or the last time she wanted to communicate with someone enough that she would sign to them. The last time if Samus recalled correctly was when she was still in service to the Galactic Federation.

Long ago Samus' home planet of K-2L was attacked by a villainous group known as the space pirates. Compared to every other living soul that ended up dead by the pirates' hands on K2-L. Samus was lucky, the worst that happened to her, at least physically was smoke from the burning planet damaging her vocal cords. The bird like alien race, the Chozo had saved her, but had been unable to rescue her in time to heal her voice completely. Samus was never really bothered by her voice being lost. After losing everything she had known at such a young age. Samus found she never really had much to say, prefering to stay silent. After leaving the Galactic Federation, and becoming a bounty hunter. Samus had little reason to speak to anyone. Most if not all of her missions she went on alone. With no one but the horrid creatures she came across as company.

Zelda was an enigma to Samus. She was friendly, and didn't seem bothered at all by Samus' silence or their intimidating armored figure. The alien race that had rescued Samus, the Chozo had taught her how to sign, but Samus found little reason to ever use the skill. Except to her adopted Chozo family. They were gone though. Just like most who tried to get close to Samus.

Years of working alone by herself left Samus with little understanding of things like friendships. To Samus people were either enemies or non-hostile. When Samus first saw Zelda she thought nothing of the royal. Just another combatant that was gawking at her suit, but Zelda seemed intent on throwing the hunter for a loop. She apologized for staring at her at the cafe. Apologized to Samus? Apologized! Such niceties were nearly unheard of to the bounty hunter.

Then when they were announced as teammates she seemed to be even friendlier. Originally, Samus thought the Princess would be just a pampered politician, but when they sparred Zelda proved there was more to her than just a title. Perhaps with a little more training Zelda could prove to be a stable threat even to the hunter.

Samus would have to pay attention more though. That last fight the hunter blanked out, and nearly hurt the Princess. Spending years on end doing nothing but battling the worst the galaxy had to offer. Over time Samus began to become numb to it all. The bounty hunter often found herself blacking out during battle. Going through the motions of combat, but the bounty hunter would be lost to the world. It didn't hinder Samus' ability to fight if anything it made her more efficient, so Samus didn't concern herself with it.

It happened during her practice match against the Princess. Samus only wanted to see if the Princess could really hold herself in a fight, but as Zelda proved she was no push over. Samus' mind went dark, and the next thing she knew she had Zelda on the ground ready to smash the Princess' skull in.

It was completely unacceptable. Though Samus knew full well she wasn't some role model of good deeds. She just did the jobs that were asked of her, and if they involved shooting a few galactic criminals down, or destroying a dangerous life form. All the more reason to do them. Samus had never hurt someone who didn't deserve though. Sure Samus had killed pirates, murders, and criminals, but never someone who didn't have it coming.

Despite Samus nearly smashing her skull. Zelda seemed perfectly fine with, and didn't treat the hunter any differently. It was confusing. Most upon even seeing Samus were tense, ready to run from the ruthless bounty hunter. Not Zelda though she would smile serenely and greet the hunter. Stare at Samus' visor trying to decipher what the muted hunter was trying to say.

The only time Samus saw any warryingness in the Princess was just now. When she believed Samus had made some deal with Ganondorf. Samus scoffed at the very idea. The dark skinned man reminded Samus too much of Ridley, one of the leaders of the space pirates. It was clear to Samus that even if she killed Zelda and Link for Ganon. Not that she would, but if she did agree to work for Ganon, like he offered her. Then as soon as the two were dead Ganondorf would just kill Samus. Better to kill a potential threat then to leave it be after all. Perhaps that was why he tried to force Samus to obey him by attacking her after she denied him.

In Samus' defense she tried to deny Ganondorf's request, and leave it at that. Samus didn't want to get into any unnecessary fights. They were pointless, and a waste of time and energy that could be used to something useful in Samus' eyes. The man didn't seem use to people refusing him though. Foolish man had tried to threaten Samus, then he had the guts to physically force the hunter to comply. The bounty hunter had fought things ten times more frightening than Ganon. His magic and strength was impression no doubt. Certainly strong enough that the average warrior should paused at, but Samus was far from average. She spent her entire childhood being trained by the Chozo, and then spent years fighting under the military of the Galactic Federation.

Some delusioned power crazed man was not going to be the end of her. It struck the hunter as odd that when Zelda saw that she was slightly damaged from her encounter from Ganon. Instead of hiring Samus to take Ganon down she was more concerned about Samus' safety. Tactically it would make sense since Samus proved she could take on Ganon, but Zelda didn't seem to care. It gave Samus an odd feeling. No one has cared if Samus lived for a long time, but here someone she barely knew was ordering her to keep herself safe. It was baffling, completely confusing to the hunter.

Shaking her head Samus willed the thoughts of the confusing Princess away. It didn't matter after all. Samus was almost positive the Princess was only being kind because they were teammates. If they were on bad terms winning battles together would be nearly impossible. Yes, that was it, Samus calmed her thoughts. As soon as the first few rounds came to an end. Zelda would be like all the other, and would inch away in fear. What other reaction could Samus expect? After all she was a ruthless bounty hunter. Until the time came when Zelda would turn on the hunter, Samus would enjoy the company. It was not often someone would willingly spend time with her.

* * *

"What are you reading?" Zelda snapped the book shut upon hearing Link enter their shared home for the tournament. Samus revealing she was mute had left Zelda borrowing several books on sign language. Before returning home to study the language. In Zelda's mind being the ruler of Hyrule she should know as many languages as she could anyway. Adding another language to her knowledge would only improve her ability to govern. Zelda mainly just wanted to understand what the silent hunter was saying though.

"Nothing, just a book from the library." Zelda slipped the book out of sight moving it next to her so Link couldn't see the title. She didn't feel like getting into another debate about Samus with Link. The blonde hero merely lifted an eyebrow before a mischievous smirk came to his face.

"It's not porn is it?" Link asked grinning collapsing onto the couch next to Zelda.

"Link! No it is not! You've been hanging out with the Gorons too much!" Link laughed as Zelda's face flushed scarlet at the accusation.

"Hey, it's okay if you read a steamy novel every now and again. I won't judge." The Hero grinned if Zelda was allowed to laugh at his bruised ego than it was only fair that he got a laugh at Zelda every now again.

Zelda slapped Link's shoulder glaring at him, but her normal razor sharp glare was dulled by her embarrassed flushed face.

"I was not reading some scandalous book! Get your head out of the gutter!" The blonde continued to grin goofily at the Princess' expense. Link tried reach around the Princess to grab the book, but Zelda slapped his hand away.

"Hey if I can't know what you're reading. Then I have to assume you're reading steamy romance novels." Zelda huffed taking Link's hat and pulling it down over the Hero's head covering his face.

"Hush! Before I decide to banish you from Hyrule." The blonde laughed fixing his long green hat.

"Awww and after all I did to save it. I guess I'll just have to live with the Gorons."

"On second thought, I order you to stay at least several miles away from the Gorons instead." Link crossed his arms a mocking imitation of Zelda's stern look she often gave him.

"Now your majesty I believe that is an abuse of your power." Zelda rose from the couch taking the book with her.

"I am completely within the bounds of my authority. You know I don't read such frivolous things. I was merely learning about the different dimensions our opponents are from." Link nodded agreeing at least with some of that statement. He refused to believe Zelda didn't read frivolous things as she called them.

"I refuse to believe that. Let me live in my fantasy where you do something for fun. That doesn't involve improving the kingdom in some way." Zelda shook her in head in exasperation walking out of the room.

"I'm going to start spreading rumors around the castle. That you're eloping with some handsome buff warrior prince or something!" The hero joked trying to get one last rise from the royal.

"They'll never believe you, and you know it." It was true Zelda put her country above all else. Though her advisor would be very pleased if she found Hyrule a king. They respected that Zelda could rule without one. Link was still surprised he managed to drag Zelda away from her kingdom, and to the tournament in the first place.

"I know that's the sad part!" Link exclaimed, Zelda shaking her head finally leaving the hero alone. Her eloping with someone here, a very preposterous idea Zelda thought.

* * *

 _ **A.N. IMPORTANT NOTE BELOW**_

 _ **I can already sense everyone running to review and say Samus isn't mute! Don't lie I**_ ** _know someone out there was just itching to do itXD I know in canon Samus can speak, but before Other M it was always my headcannon that Samus physically couldn't speak. Which if you think about it at least to me makes sense. I know she speaks in Metroid Fusion as well, but I have explanation for that. Which will come in later in this story. So if you absolutely can't stand the idea of Samus being mute that saddens me, but you don't have to keep reading this story then. I do hope you guys stick around though you are all so lovely for reading^^ With that reviews are loved and I will see you guys next chapter!_**

 ** _Side Note_**

 ** _From reading your reviews I saw a lot of you were hoping to see Samus kick Ganon's butt. Don't you worry that time will come you'll just have to wait and see for an epic fight between themXD_**


	5. Two Sides

_**A.N. I'd like to thank you guys for all the lovely things you said about the last chapter. I rewrote that chapter like three times before I was finally satisfied, so I'm glad you all like it^^ Here's the next one for you guys enjoy!**_

* * *

Chapter 5 Two Sides

A missile came barreling towards Zelda from above. Summoning Nayru's power Zelda reflected the projectile in front of her. The missile changing course bouncing off Zelda's magic. The wire frame that once stood poised to attack in front of Zelda was greeted by the reflected missile exploding in its face. Following up Zelda kicked the wire frame while it was still reeling from the missile. The holographic man fell back right into Samus fist nailing him in the back. The wire frame man dematerialized disappearing from the training room.

Samus took a more relaxed stance once the training hologram disappeared. Zelda too relaxed letting out a deep breath.

"I'm glad I've got the timing down on reflecting that. Getting blown up by your missiles probably won't help us in a real match." If Samus could laugh Zelda believed the hunter may have chuckled.

The two had begun practicing for their upcoming match against Bowser and Mario. Zelda found training with Samus vastly different than practicing with Link. While Link was an excellent teacher showing Zelda how to improve. Samus pushed the Princess to adapt, letting Zelda learn by experience.

By now they were working on fighting together, though the training holograms were usually simple to defeat. They were getting a rhythm together, defeating even the higher level wireframes with relative ease. Zelda found Samus fairly easy to cooperate with in combat. The hunter was like a tank ignoring damage like it was nothing, it was unsurprising Link believe them to be a robot. Samus must have been fighting for a long time. They fought like a finely crafted weapon, easily adapting to Zelda's aid in combat.

Samus' weapons and Zelda's magic became a deadly combination. Zelda was snapped from her musings though when a cold hand was tapping her shoulder. Zelda smiled at her teammate.

"Lost in thought, ready to go again?" Samus tilted their head a question Zelda had learned the gesture meant. Zelda thought for a moment for a second thinking of the possible questions Samus would ask. The Princess had yet to reveal her learning sign language to the hunter. As there was only so much one could learn from books, and Zelda still knew too little to understand Samus very well.

"Are you suggesting we take a break?" Zelda guessed, though she doubted Samus needed a rest. She had still yet to see any form of fatigue from the hunter. If it wasn't for the fact that Samus' voice was gone, something a mechanical being could just fix. Zelda might have believed Samus was some form of robotic being.

The scarlet helmet nodded confirming they believed it was time for a break. They had been training for several hours, and Zelda's muscles ached from use. It may be time for a rest, else Zelda would imagine she'd be far too tired to fight effectively.

Normally when they took a break. The two went their separate ways before meeting back at the training building. Today Zelda decided to see if she could change that.

"Would you care to join me? I was going to go to the cafe and relax before we get back to training." The hunter seemed to think for a second before nodding. They left for the cafe together in comfortable silence. Zelda couldn't help but notice when walking down the streets people seemed to stay clear of Samus, as if afraid. If they weren't avoiding the hunter's space they were giving uncertain looks. One of the Toads Zelda believed they were called even dropped his grocery bags stumbling away. If this bothered the hunter Zelda couldn't tell. Samus was an emotional wall that even as observant as Zelda was she wasn't able to read anything from the metal clad warrior.

At the cafe Zelda got an interesting drink called iced tea that couldn't be found in Hyrule. The two sat at a booth Zelda sipping her drink. Samus didn't get anything which wasn't surprising. Out of curiosity Zelda asked the question on her mind.

"Do you need to eat? I've never seen you get tired, or even drink something." Zelda got the feeling that under that helmet Samus was chuckling. The hunter nodded confirming their need for food.

"Why do I get the feeling you're getting a good laugh at me." Samus shrugged leaning back. Zelda was certain that the hunter was at least amused by the Princess falling for the rumors about Samus being more mechanical in nature. Zelda smiled shaking her head in an exasperated manner. Clearly Samus cared little for the rumors about them, or if they did the hunter didn't bother to correct anyone except Zelda.

"I've been meaning to ask you. I've been trying to learn a bit of sign language, but I can't really grasp it through books. I was hoping you could help." Samus didn't react for a second then their helmet tilted questioning the Princess.

"Why?" Zelda confirmed, Samus nodded their visor gazing at the Princess.

"I'd like to be able to understand you. I can't learn enough from books, so I was hoping you could help." The hunter still had their helmet tilted seemingly confused as to why Zelda would want to learn. Eventually though the hunter shrugged and nodded.

"You'll teach me?" The Princess asked excitedly, learning something new was always exciting to the royal. Samus nodded before raising their hand and making a one gesture with their fingers.

"You want something in return?" Zelda guessed which was reasonable. Time Samus used for teaching Zelda could be used for training. Samus nodded confirming Zelda's guess.

"What can I do for you?" The hunter appeared to think for a second, before they could form some kind of response though. The bell tied to the cafe door chimed the next thing the Princess knew a yellow blur flew by. When the dust cleared the mouse like pokemon Pikachu was standing on the table facing the hunter.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu looked like it was practically vibrating with excitement. To Zelda's surprise Samus tapped the pokemon's forehead in almost scolding manner. The hunter pointed to Zelda before looking back at the pokemon.

Pikachu spun around scratching the back of his head apologetically.

"Chuuuu." Zelda smiled it appeared that Pikachu was saying sorry for flying in butting into her and Samus' conversation.

"It's okay," Zelda patted the pokemon's head who nuzzled the Princess' palm. Content with Zelda's response the pokemon turned back to Samus. Without a second thought Pikachu jumped right onto Samus' head the hunter barely responding as if this was normal.

"Pika, pika pi!" The pokemon continued making small noises as if Samus would understand them. The yellow mouse like creature adjusted himself so he could comfortably lay on top the hunter. Zelda couldn't stop the giggle from escaping her. Really how could anyone be afraid of Samus. They came off as a little aloof and an extremely powerful warrior, but watching them let a small mouse pokemon sit on their head was one of the most adorably humorous things Zelda has seen in while.

Samus looked to Zelda with a look that the Princess could only guess was a glare. That said laugh again and I'll punch you. Pikachu didn't seem to like Samus not paying attention to him though, as the pokemon used its tiny hands to flail in front of Samus' visor. The hunter complied reaching up to pet the pokemon's head.

"Chuuu!" Electric sparks came from Pikachu's red cheeks showing its happiness. Zelda had to lean back to avoid getting a small shock coming from the pokemon. The Princess couldn't help the second laugh at the hunter's expense. A green visor glared at her, but then the hunter tapped Pikachu's head. The pokemon leaned over the hunter to look into their visor.

A second passed an unspoken conversation passing between the pokemon and hunter. Before Zelda could react the small pokemon jumped on the royal.

"Pika!" Since Zelda was smaller Pikachu had to adjust himself to balance on her shoulder. The pokemon nuzzled Zelda face making small noises of happiness. Zelda couldn't help but wonder how Samus communicated with Pikachu.

Zelda flinched when a small amount of static came from the happy pokemon. Carefully Zelda picked the pokemon off of her placing him back on the table.

"Sorry, I'm a little less electric proof than Samus." The pokemon's ears flicked appearing embarrassed. Pikachu hopped back onto Samus getting comfortable.

The rest of the time at cafe was very enjoyable. The hunter showed Zelda a few simple signs that Zelda had somewhat a grasp on from the books, and the excitable pokemon kept both entertained. Never letting either of them go too long before reminding them that he was there. By the time it was time to return to training Zelda was feeling refreshed, and ready to get back to work.

Pikachu followed them back to the training building, or tried to ride back on Samus' head. Until the hunter grabbed him by the scruff of his neck placing him on the ground. It didn't seem to detrey the pokemon and he happily jumped on Zelda's shoulder instead. Zelda didn't mind as long as the pokemon wasn't producing electricity.

The training room was just as they left it with its clear white tiles that would project holograms. Pikachu hopped off Zelda's shoulder his fur bristling with excitement. The pokemon turned to Zelda and Samus looking determined.

"Pika!" Electricity sparked around the yellow pokemon Zelda quirked an eyebrow.

"Are you challenging us?" More energy came from the pokemon as it looked at Zelda. The Princess glanced at Samus who shrugged.

"It wouldn't really be fair two on one." Zelda pointing out, never feeling right if the odds were not fair for all parties. Samus seemed to solve this issues the hunter went over to the far wall leaning against it, arms crossed. Zelda gave the hunter an amused look.

"You know ditching me before the fight even begins does not inspire confidence in our teamwork." The hunter shrugged before motioning to Pikachu with a stare saying you're afraid to fight that. The pokemon seemed to pick up on that and a small blast of electricity came from the pokemon. Nailing the hunter sparks showered off the metal armor, Samus didn't even flinch though. The metal warrior must be used to Pikachu's electric attacks, or their armor protected them enough they didn't feel it.

"Alright Pikachu, after you." Zelda took a fighting stance grinning, though a hint of worry crossed the Princess' mind. This would be her first match against a creature like Pikachu. Zelda knew little about these pokemon, so the Princess would have to be ready for anything.

Taking the invitation Pikachu sprung forward at blinding speed. Zelda hardly had the time to spin out of the way. Acting fast Zelda kicked the yellow creature away while it was trying to readjust himself. It may have been fast, but coming out of a charge like that left Pikachu open.

Din's power came to Zelda's hand fire bursting from her fingertips right at the pokemon. Pikachu jumped avoiding the fire then angling downward the pokemon's skull bashed right into Zelda's stomach before she could dodge.

Zelda tried to punch the pokemon away, but Pikachu clung to Zelda. In the next moment Zelda's vision went white as electricity assaulted the Princess. Zelda collapsed to her knees as Pikachu jumped away the damage done. The pokemon must have thought that was the end of Zelda, as he didn't even try to dodge when another blast of magic was sent flying at him. A cry of pain and surprise came from the yellow creature as he was sent soaring through the air.

Through Zelda's blurry vision she willed her magic to the surface, quickly getting up running at the pokemon. While Pikachu tried to recover the Princess struke the pokemon before he could counter attack. The pokemon being so light went flying hitting the wall with an audible thud. Pikachu made a whining noise, defeated.

Zelda let out a sigh of relief her body burned from Pikachu's electric attack. The Princess stumbled until a cool hand gently took her arm supporting her.

"Thanks Samus," the hunter gave a firm nod helping Zelda to lean against the wall. She slowly eased down to sit, while Samus went over to the pokemon. Pikachu perked up quickly though slightly subdued from the short battle. Samus picked the electric mouse up depositing him next to Zelda.

Pikachu crawled onto Zelda's lap, and the Princess smiled petting the pokemon's soft fur.

"I'll do well not to let your cute demeanor fool me again. You certainly are a force to be reckoned with." The pokemon nuzzled Zelda affectionately.

"Chuuuuu." The pokemon sprawled himself over Zelda relaxing. Samus stood next to the two leaning against the wall their visor aglow. Zelda looked up at the hunter knowing the glowing visor meant Samus was making sure they were okay.

"I'm fine just give me a minute." After a moment Zelda got back up despite Pikachu's protests. Though her entire body still burned from the electric shock Pikachu gave her the Princess wanted to continue. There were sure to be even more powerful opponents in the tournament, and Zelda knew she would have to become stronger. If she had any hopes of getting far into this tournament. Samus and Zelda went back to their training, Pikachu snoozing in the corner of the room all the while.

* * *

Link would have been lying if he said he wasn't worried. He tried not to be overbearing and annoy his friend with his worries, but Link was really starting to be concerned for Zelda. Just today he saw Ganondorf, it had taken all Link's willpower not to attack him right then and there. Though Link noted the Gerudo King looked a little worse for wear, like he'd been in a fight or something. It didn't do anything to relax the Hero. His greatest enemy was here, and that only added to the fact his best friend was teamed with a possible crazy killing machine.

The green clad hero took a long sip of his drink groaning. He was trying to relax a little at the small home provided for them. Since the real fighting would be starting soon, but Link couldn't keep his anxieties at bay. Zelda was one of Link's closest friends. Probably the closest friend he had next to Saria and Malon back in Hyrule.

Link couldn't understand how Zelda was so at ease with Samus. She told him that she fought Samus herself. Link would have figured that after seeing how dangerous and cold blooded the metal warrior was. Zelda would be more wary of them, but then again Link wasn't too surprise. Zelda had a knack for being far more forgiving than Link believed she should. Maybe it was a queen thing, Link assumed. He knew how dangerous Samus was though. The hero remembered their epic fight in the final round of the first tournament like it was yesterday.

 _Final Destination was a rather unnerving stage, at least to Link. The floating platform suspended in the endless void by technology Link knew nothing of. They had just been warped in Samus stood on the opposite side of the stage. The silent metal warrior seemed as calm as could be. While Link held his weapons tightly anticipating the match to begin._

"Three _!" Master Hand's booming voice called out, Link held his shield up facing the metal clad warrior._

"Two _!" Samus' arm cannon took aim at Link their other hand steadied the weapon._

"One _!" Link's boots dug into the smooth ground._

" _Fight!" An explosion hit Link's shield making the Hero grunt. Link charged forward his shield protecting him from another missile fired his way. With a wide swing the Hero used the master sword and slashed at the hunter. Samus jumped out of the way firing several energy shots at Link from above._

 _Link deflected one with his sword dodging the others just barely getting his shield up in time to block Samus as they attempt to slam down and crush the Hero. Stumbling from the heavy metal warrior Link threw them off his shield. Then swinging his sword to make the metal warrior move further away. This only prompted the warrior to fire another missile at him._

 _Ducking quickly the missile flew over head off into the distance. Samus' fist collided with Link's shield as they came in for another attack. A loud clang of metal rang out, and Link could swear the tough Hyrulian shield dented under the massive force._

 _Samus was open though and Link quickly brought his sword into a stab. The hunter moved just enough but the scraping of metal on metal could be heard. A visible gash marred the side of the metal warrior's helmet. This didn't seem to bother the metal warrior at all though, and while Link had his arm extended they grabbed him pulling him into their arm cannon._

 _The weapon made Link's vision spin as the weapon collided with his head. The Hero flailed his shield up knocking Samus away. The metalic taste of blood dripped into his mouth, and Link glared at the metal warrior. Quickly Link reached into his pouch, and pulled out a bomb. Samus' arm cannon was raised, and Link threw the bomb the explosive was met by a missile. Creating a cloud of dark black smoke as the two exploded in the middle of the field._

 _Link ran through the smoke jumping while within the cloud bringing the master sword down on the metal warrior. Metal screamed as the sword slashed down on Samus. The metal warrior ignored the damage, and kicked Link while he was open. The Hero reeled back hurriedly righting himself blocking another punch with his shield._

 _The green clad hero cursed to himself. No matter what he did it was like the warrior didn't even feel it. There was now a large gash slicing straight down Samus' body, but it didn't phase them. While Link's vision was blurring in and out from the blow to the head. The blonde was panting keeping his weapons up and ready despite his muscles' protest. He would not give up. He defeated the the king of evil Ganondorf. There was no way Link would lose to some hunk of metal._

 _The battle continued nether combatant backing down, and while exhaustion began to weigh on the green clad hero. He refused to give up coming at the metal warrior repeatedly. Eventually when the two were trading blows Link saw his moment to end this. Sharply jabbing the master sword forward time seemed to freeze as Link ran the master sword through the metal clad warrior's stomach._

 _Link didn't know if the sword pierced all the way through, because the next thing he knew a cold metal hand enclosed around his neck. Already injured and tired he could only struggle in vain as he was lifted off the ground. The hand tightened its hold around his neck, and Link could barely get any air into his desperate lungs. As his vision blurred in and out that expressionless visor bore into him. The master sword was firmly hilted in the warrior's stomach, and through his blurring vision he might have seen blood oozing through the damage in the armor._

 _That didn't matter though, because he was falling now the stage getting smaller Link realized. The metal warrior had threw him off the stage after robbing him of air. Without the master sword Link was unable to use his spin attack in an attempt to get back to the stage, so the Hero fell knowing he had lost._

* * *

 _ **A.N. What's better than writing adorable moments between Samus and Zelda writing adorable moments between Samus and Zelda. Then throw Pikachu in there! Pikachu is like the cat Samus gave food once now he won't leave her alone until he gets moreXD Joking aside I will go into why Pikachu isn't afraid of Samus later right now though most things about Samus will be revealed as Zelda learns about them.**_

 _ **On a side note I hope you guys enjoyed seeing Link's point of view on things. I wanted to show why he doesn't trust Samus. Since Link is an important part of Zelda's life I will take time to show him growing to see Samus as a friend.**_

 _ **Another side note(I really need to make shorter author notes sorryXD) I've been working through my draft for what's going to happen, and I do plan to take this into the Brawl tournament so I hope you guys stick around to see it. Till next chapter reviews are loved, I'll see you guys then!**_


	6. Quite a Team

_**A.N. You guys are all so sweet in your reviews. Thanks to all who were giving advice to fix my errors. I'll be the first to admit I'm terrible with grammar each chapter I try to be a little better for you guys. I still suck though so sorry about that, but with that enjoy the chapter!**_

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Chapter 6 Quite a Team

The Princess was nervous from what Samus could tell. She would fidget where she stood, and would wring her hands in an anxious manner. They were waiting in the warp zone, the area that would transport them. Once Mario and Bowser arrived they would be warped to the place of their fight. Samus was calm of course. Bowser might be somewhat of a challenge, but the bounty hunter was confident in their skills. Mario might have improved since the last tournament, though Samus deemed it unlikely he changed his overall style of combat.

Zelda's eyebrow furrowed her anxiety over her first real match clear. The hunter wondered what had the Princess so on edge. There was no way to die in the tournament. One would be transported out before they were killed, so while things could get painful in the ring. It was nothing that couldn't be fix with a few days in the infirmary, and it wasn't imperative that they won. This was just the first of many matches to come. There was still plenty of time to make a comeback if they lost.

Samus wasn't really sure how to ease the Princess' worries, or if she should even attempt. After all she wasn't that good with people. Perhaps she was just misreading the Princess, and she was actually mentally preparing for the fight.

Again Samus found that unlikely she may not be able to tell a lot from what someone was saying, but years of being a silent observer. Samus had become quite efficient at reading body language, and it was clear from the Princess' subtlest gestures she was on edge about the coming fight.

Not being able to say anything reassuring, not that Samus would know what she could say that would reassure the Princess anyway. The huntress placed her hand on the Princess' shoulder. Zelda jumped slightly clearly so lost in her musings that she forgot Samus was even there. Samus removed her hand looking down at the royal. She relaxed as soon as she realized it was just Samus. It was odd no one ever calmed down at the sight of her, normally the reaction was the exact opposite.

"Sorry, guess I'm a little on edge." The Princess stated sheepishly smiling at the huntress. Samus nodded though, the feeling of nervousness about a fight was foreign to her. The Chozo had trained her for years instilling Samus' calm demeanor within her. Staying calm and collected could be the difference between life and death in a combat situation. She supposed she could understand that fighting was something Zelda rarely did, so she would be on edge over it.

When Samus thought on it, Zelda never mentioned fighting before the tournament. It made it all the more impressive at the progress she made when training with Samus.

Samus believed Zelda would be fine. She may still have a few weakness that could be worked on, but overall Samus was impressed how much the Princess learned in such a short time. Zelda was a quick study, and Samus was sure that after a few real matches. The Princess would improve even more.

Though Zelda seemed to relax a little after Samus' intervention she still appeared quite on edge.

It wasn't long before Bowser and Mario showed up. The large koopa could be heard stomping his way down the hall. A rather exasperated sounding Mario trailing after him.

"Maybe if you weren't so short you'd keep up!" The King of Koopas taunted the red clad plumber, who just sighed following the lumbering Bowser into the warp room.

"Samus," Mario gave a polite nod to the huntress, though Samus could tell he was tense. Samus gave him credit for at least attempting to be civil with her. Her feared reputation was not lost to Samus, Zelda seemed to be the only one lost to it.

Mario and Zelda introduced themselves to each other. Bowser butting in to greet the beautiful Princess. Samus zoned out not really paying attention to the words they were exchanging. She did however keep a close eye on Bowser. He was a little too close to Zelda for the huntress' comfort. From what Samus heard he had a reputation for kidnaping Princesses. Samus made note to keep him away from Zelda during the fight.

Once introductions were done, with all fighters present the warp pad beneath their feet began to glow a bright blinding white. Warping was a quick and painless a way of travel only the Master Hand had perfected to this level. The sensation of floating would occur, and a blinding white light would glow from the warp pad. Then next thing one knew they were in a completely different place. Samus preferred traveling in her ship, but she did admire the advance technology as the pad spirited them away to the area they would fight in.

As soon as the world came back into focus Samus quickly took in the environment looking for danger. The clouds were racing by at a fast pace, and skyscrapers were zipping by below. The Great Fox, Fox McCloud's flagship, this would certainly make things interesting.

Samus looked over to Zelda to find her teammate eyes wide, face pale, trying to steady herself on the fast moving ship. Acting quickly the huntress helped the Princess gently grabbing her arm to steady her. Zelda appeared grateful, and Samus nodded letting go now that the Princess had her bearings. Her face still looked uneasy glancing at the moving ground below, before snapping back to focus on their opponents.

"Three!" Master Hand's booming voice shouted from nowhere in particular. While Samus and Zelda were position at the front of the ship. Bowser and Mario stood at the other end. Mario stood poised on left wing of the ship, and Samus could spy Bowser balancing on the engines, trying not to get burned by the heat coming off them.

"Two!" Samus gave one more glance to Zelda. The Princess gave the huntress a determined look, her hands dazzled with magic power ready for the fight.

"One!" The HUD inside Samus' helmet sprung to life, giving the huntress all necessary battle info. Full energy and full missiles, Samus was ready.

"Fight!" Mario struck first jumping from his spot on the wing, a fireball was flung from his palm. A blast of magic fire flew by Samus and met the plumber's attack in a small inferno of an explosion.

With a quick movements Samus sprinted forward. Mario thinking Samus was about to tackle him jumped out of the way. Only to be met by another blast of magic from Zelda. The red clad plumber cried out in pain, but he quickly adjusted himself and landed on the ship's wing.

Just as Samus reached the end of the ship's main body. Bowser jumped from his position on the engines to met her. The huntress sprung up the two clashing in the air. Bowser's huge fist met Samus', and the two landed with a thud that shook the whole ship. Samus acted first firing a missile sending it hurling Bowser's way. Being too large and slow Bowser took the hit. When the smoke clear the Koopa smirked only minor damage apparent on the King of Koopas.

"Is that all you got!" Bowser charged intending to smash Samus into the ground. Both of Bowser's fists came down smashing hard into the hull of the ship. Samus just barely dodging out of the way. When the large koopa moved there was a sizable dent of twisted metal where he had smashed into the ship.

"Come on! Mario said you were the best fighter here! Just hold still and let me smash you!" The koopa yelled his eyebrow twitching in annoyance. Though he couldn't see it Samus smirked under her helmet, an impatient angry opponent was easy to defeat.

Bowser came charging again this time Samus ran at him, almost like a twisted game of chicken to see who would change course first. Samus did change course but not in the way Bowser expected. Where once a human figure charged at him now a small ball rolled under him. Before Bowser could even process what just happened, or turn around to find Samus. An explosion came from underneath him, and he tripped falling flat on his face.

Before he could recover Samus jumped and slammed down in front of Bowser. Her arm cannon was aimed point blank at the koopa's head. Just as Bowser tried to stand a missile was driven right into his head. To Samus' surprise, through the smoke of the missile Bowser recovered.

A large hand took hold of the huntress' arm cannon pointing it away. Opening his large maw fire spilled out the koopa's mouth. Samus' HUD rang out telling the huntress of the danger the suit was under going. Using her free hand Samus punched Bowser through the flames squarely in the jaw, but Bowser did not release her.

Out of no where a red blur flew by, nailing Bowser in the face forcing him to close his jaw and flinch away. Samus used the opportunity kicking Bowser then firing a missile blindly to get him to release his grip on the huntress' arm.

Once free Samus saw what hit Bowser. Mario was pulling himself up having to grab hold of the side of the ship to keep from flying off, clearly winded from being sent flying. Then Zelda appeared at Samus' side looking better off than Mario, but still worn and tired. Despite this she gave Samus an almost cocky smile.

"I thought you could use some help." Samus found herself smirking under her helmet. Bowser loudly groaned spotting Mario he used his large hand to pull the plumber back onto the ship.

"What the shell Mario! Watch it!" Before Mario could respond their opponents acted. Samus came at the Koopa King spin jumping before energy surrounded her body. Pulling him in with the screw attack Bowser yelled out in pain as the move brought them high into the air. Mario was left to face Zelda the Princess moving quickly gathering her magic before unleashing it on the plumber.

While Princess and plumber duked it out. Samus and Bowser landed in a heated struggle on top of the engines of the ship. Bowser hit the ground his shell taking most of the force for him. Samus landing ontop him roughly firing a missile point blank at his head again. Bowser withdrew into his shell spinning forcing Samus to jump off.

"Argh! Stop doing that!" Bowser yelled upon coming out of his shell. This time the damage was becoming more clear. Blood flecks covered the Koopa's face, and several scorch marks were apparent on his body.

"I've had about enough of you metalhead!" Bowser went back inside his shell, and went spinning towards the huntress like a whirling fortress of spikes. Samus couldn't move out of the way in time, and the shell slammed into her. Screaming metal rang out as Bowser shell grinded into Samus' suit. Wasting no time Samus swung her arm cannon hitting the shell pushing it back using its own momentum. Bowser sprung out of his protective armor taking hold of the ship before he flew of.

Aiming her arm cannon Samus readied another missile, but before it could leave the weapon. A heavy boot slammed down on her head. Mario jump off before Samus could take a swing at him. Landing next to Bowser fists raised Mario rolled his eyes at the damaged koopa.

"I told you to be-a careful Bowser!" The King of Koopas huffed looking annoyed.

"Ya, Ya, plumber boy was right as always. Let's just finish this." Samus' eyes narrowed, Mario defeated Zelda. The huntress cursed herself she should have paid more attention and aided the Princess more. It was her first fight after all. Now she would have to take on both Mario and Bowser.

The two came fast both attacking at the same time. Samus sent a missile flying before dodging out of the way. Bowser's fist crashed into the ship, the koopa hissing in pain at the missed attack. Mario recovered quickly sending a fireball hurling at Samus. She prepared herself for the hit, but then Samus felt something wrap around her leg. The next thing the huntress knew she was hanging upside down off the ship. A chain wrapped around her leg the only thing keeping her from falling. Looking up Samus' eyes widened, hidden from sight on the lower wing was Zelda or Sheik Samus believed her alter ego was called.

The clever Princess must have made Mario believe her knocked off the ship. When really she managed to recover and position herself on the wing. Quickly the sheikah pulled the huntress up onto the wing. The two getting out of sight before their opponents looked over the edge and spot them.

"Hey Mario you actually did something useful good job!" Samus heard the koopa laughing no doubt believing they won. It must have appeared that Mario's fireball had blew her off the ship.

"Bowser! Master Hand hasn't called it! The match isn't over!" The veteran fighter scolded his teammate. The two were looking over the edge of the ship not noticing their opponents hiding from them.

Beside Samus the Sheikah changed back into Zelda. Samus frowned under her helmet, a large burn marred the Princess' side. No doubt a blast of fire from Mario had knocked her off in the first place. It looked painful the Princess' dress not made for protection, a sizable burnt hole in the dress revealed the damage. For whatever reason Samus felt the urge to jump back onto the engine, and slam Mario's face into the ground.

"I'll distract them, sneak around and get them from behind." Zelda whispered sounding like a Queen giving commands to her subjects. Samus didn't protest, though normally she hated following someone else's command. It was a sound plan, so there was no reason not to comply. Zelda moved from the far side of the wing sending a blast of magic at the hero and villain of the Mushroom Kingdom.

"Gah! There!" Bowser shouted before a blast of fire nailed him in the face. Quickly while their focus was on Zelda Samus jumped back onto the main hull of the ship. Moving down to the engine Samus jumped down upon the two neither noticing until it was too late. Landing with all the force she could Samus landed right on Bowser's back. The spikes dug into Samus' feet, but using the force she landed with. The huntress sent Bowser reeling forward falling off the ship. Unable to recover, Samus watched as Bowser's form disappeared. Master Hand teleporting him out before he fell to his death.

Mario though delayed by the shock of Bowser being dispatched punched Samus, who blocked with her arm cannon. Several more punches came that Samus blocked. Mario stopped upon sparing a glance to see Zelda coming from behind him. Just in time he was able to block the kick coming from the royal. Acting fast Samus backhanded the plumber with her arm cannon. Mario went flying off the ship following his ally and being teleported out before his death could occur.

"Game!" Not even giving the fighters a chance to breath the victors were teleported away. The clear skies of Corneia were soon replaced by the plain metal walls of the warp room.

Samus felt Zelda's light touch on her arm. The Princess was using the bounty hunter to steady herself. Using her other hand the injured royal was wincing at the rather painful looking burn on her side. Samus activated her scan visor, within seconds her suit gave her a summary of Zelda's wounds. Aside from the burn the Princess wasn't in too bad of shape. Once her wound was treated rest would be all she needed. Despite clearly being in pain the Princess' smile was dazzling.

"That went well, we make quite a team don't we? Though I do hope not all the matches will be on giant flying ships." Samus smiled lightly under her helmet. That was probably the Princess' first experience with a space ship, or any kind of flying ship for that matter. Samus was pretty sure Zelda's world was behind on modern technology. For being her first time fighting in the air like that Samus was fairly impressed on how well the Princess adapted.

Zelda let go of Samus and shakily took a step towards the door. Without missing a beat Samus offered her arm to the Princess upon seeing her wince and stumble due to her wound. The Princess looked gratefully at the huntress, her lithe form taking support from Samus steady frame.

"Thank you Samus, one would think the Master Hand would teleport everyone to an infirmary after a match." Samus nodded idly, never really putting much thought into it herself. After all Samus' suit took most of the punishment, and the damage Samus herself did take she could fix herself back up in her ship in solitude instead of showing weakness to her opponents.

Zelda however needed to get some actual medical attention. Helping the Princess walk out of the warp zone. Samus wondered if she should just carry the Princess. It would certainly be less of a hassle, but the huntress thought better of it. She didn't know if Zelda would allow such an invasion of her space, and Samus wasn't too keen on upsetting her teammate.

Luckily the infirmary was in the same building as the warp zone, so it wasn't long before they had made it to the sterile white infirmary. Zelda was hurriedly whisked away to receive proper care, despite the Princess' protests that she was fine.

Samus was about to turn and leave when she found herself face to face with the green clad Hero of Hyrule, Link. He must have come looking for Zelda, but as he gazed at Samus his face was hard. Link did not bother to conceal his distrust of Samus. After a moment the hero sighed looking rather displeased. The two stared at each other, Link looking like he wanted to say something. Under her helmet Samus sighed she didn't have the patience for a staring contest with the Hero of Time, and frankly the distrustful look was annoying.

The huntress easily side stepped the hero she paused at the doorway before leaving. Link had stopped his glaring, and went to wait for Zelda to be finished with her treatment. In truth Samus had no issue with Link. His skill in battle was admirable, and Samus could respect that. He also seemed to be looked upon as a true hero. People on the street would look at him in awe, stopping whatever they were doing to stare at the green clad swordsman. People from his own dimension would bow in respect. Normally Samus would be wary of people like him. There was always two sides to every coin, but Link did seem to be a generally a good person.

Samus was getting annoyed at his increased distrusted of her however. She wasn't blind, she knew what Link and all the other fighters minus Zelda thought of her. A cold blooded machine and even if there was some truth to that idea. It was becoming a nuisance when the blonde was sending Samus seething looks whenever they crossed path. From what Samus could surmise Link and Zelda were from the same world, and the two were close friends. Zelda being teammates with the huntress upset the swordsman. Must be the Hero being over protective of Zelda.

The Princess could take care of herself, and Link glaring at Samus wasn't going to make her any safer anyway. If Link didn't like her that was fine, he would just be another on a long list of people that hated Samus with a passion. He should be at least smart enough to know. That it would be stupid for Samus to attack Zelda when they were in dimension that Samus could not escape until the end of the tournament.

Not that Samus would ever hurt Zelda. It was hard to admit or even understand, but she was enjoying the royal's presence. No one had ever wanted to speak with Samus so much that they would attempt to learn sign language. Even now when Zelda could only understand a few basic signs. The Princess was fine with sitting in silence with Samus, or attempting to guess what the huntress was trying to say.

Samus shook the thoughts away, it was no use wondering about it. Samus doubted she would understand Zelda's motives. Unless this was all a ploy to gain Samus' loyalty, and then get the hunter to follow the royal's commands. Samus didn't believe that was it however, Zelda seemed far too kind to do something like that.

Leaving the infirmary Samus headed back to the garage that her ship was docked at. Exiting to the lobby of the building several other fighters were leaving as well. There was a large flatscreen in the lobby that allowed those not fighting to watch the battles unfold. Most of the fighters had left since the match was over, but one had stayed.

Eyes narrowing under her helmet Samus stood poised ready for another fight. Ganondorf features were tense rage was in his eyes, but he kept his posture civil as he approached Samus.

"Aran, I see you came out victorious. I wonder how long you will heel to your new master?" Samus didn't respond in any form. What did the dark skinned man want? She wondered. She already proved that he was no match for the huntress. What game was he playing?

"What has the glorious Princess of Hyrule offered you that has you following her like a lost dog?" Sarcasm dripped from Ganon's voice, and Samus' fist clenched. It wasn't the first time someone called her a dog. It was a common insult among those who hated the Galactic Federation in her world. Ganon saw this smirking he continued.

"No need to get angry I don't wish to fight you this time. Just talk." Samus wanted to tell him he defiantly didn't want to fight her. The villain of Hyrule was testing her patience, and he was getting rather close to getting a super missile to the face.

"I lost my temper last time, but I will ask of your services again. That Hero brat holds no love for you it's clear as day. I don't know what her highness is offering you, but whatever it is I could give you it and more." The Gerudo King's expression became dark a sinister look on his face. Ganondorf didn't seem like one to swallow his pride like this and demand help again. Whatever Zelda and Link have that he wants must be very important indeed Samus thought.

"If you don't I will have no choice but to crush you along with them." Samus wanted to scoff was this supposed to intimidate her? Make her want to follow this evil man? The only thing that stopped Samus from smashing the Gerudo King was her word to Zelda she would not go picking a fight with the dark lord.

Samus strode confidently pass the gerudo ignoring him. There was no way Samus would ever take orders from anybody like that. She left heading to her ship, ignoring the deadly look Ganon gave her. He toyed with magic in his hand watching the huntress leave a smirk on his face.

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 _ **A.N. I do love writing from Samus' point of view. I spent a lot of time constructing what I thought Samus would think and act like, though I do love her depicted as a sarcastic angry bounty hunter, kicking ass and taking names. I think that being raised by the Chozo, a race that is depicted in the games as being very spiritual and peaceful, I think that some of that would rub off on Samus. Anyway I'm sure you guys don't want to read me ramble about how I go about characterizing Samus, so I'll just leave it to the story to show how I write her. Reviews are loved as always see you next chapter!^^**_


	7. Friendships and Nightmares

**_A.N. Sorry for the wait on this one. I really need to make a consistent schedule for when I upload these chapters, but anyway enjoy the chapter lovely readers.^^_**

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Chapter 7 Friendships and Nightmares

Zelda let out an exhausted breath collapsing back into her bed, after maybe the fifth time of trying to get comfortable enough to sleep. After the match the infirmary had kept the Princess for the rest of the day, patching up her wounds. They let her leave with the condition of no training or fighting for the next two days. Which was fine as Zelda knew her and Samus' next match wouldn't be for another few days.

Now attempting to sleep back at the flat they were provided to live at. Despite the pain that still gnawed at her side. The Princess couldn't stop grinning to herself as she lay in bed. They won! Which if Zelda thought on it, with the one of the most powerful fighters on her side. It wasn't that surprising, however Zelda was still amazed how well she did in the match. If the Princess was honest she didn't think she was going to do very well in the melee. Zelda excelled at many things she knew that. Fighting was not one of them, at least in Zelda's eyes. She did not hinder her teammate, and they won. That was all that mattered.

The brunette hissed in pain from the still tender wound. Carefully sitting up Zelda lifted up her thin sleeveless night shirt. Calling upon her magic Zelda placed a hand on the bandaged wound. Zelda liked to think she had a firm grasp on her magical abilities. She could heal others without much of an issue. Healing her own wounds though Zelda could never seem to get the spell to work correctly. Link once pointed out maybe it was because Zelda care more about others than herself, but she never put too much thought into it. After all since Hyrule was at peace. The worst injury Zelda ever got was a paper cut from paperwork concerning Hyrule.

Sighing in relief as the pain subsided a little, Zelda leaned back against her headboard. Taking a moment to enjoy the time without pain. Zelda turned her gaze out the window. It was strange in Hyrule once night fell things became peacefully silent. The only light would be the moon and stars shining down upon the world.

In Subspace though, the city didn't seem to rest with the sun. Zelda could see lights from buildings streaming through her window, and she could still hear people going about their business on the streets below.

Looking out the window Zelda wondered where her silent teammate went off to. After the match the Princess had to admit her mind was sort of blurry on what happened. Exhaustion and pain from the battle had taken a toll on her. She remembered Samus letting the Princess lean on them leading them to the infirmary, and she recalled Link rushing in congratulating her on the fight. Samus seemed to disappear at some point once Zelda got to the infirmary.

This caused the Princess to frown slightly. For someone wearing heavy bright orange armor, Samus had a knack for slipping away unnoticed. Zelda hoped before leaving Samus received any medical attention they needed. Though Samus never appeared to be hurt. From what Zelda was learning Samus was the kind of person that would sooner bleed out than admit they were injured.

A shot of pain flared up again, and Zelda hissed again before sighing. Carefully Zelda slide out of bed padding her way over to her closet. Changing into one of her less royal looking dresses. Zelda figured she wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon, so she might as well go on a walk and enjoy the nighttime air. Her side was going to be bothering her anyway. She might as well do something that might distract her from the pain.

Zelda headed out careful not to wake the snoozing Link in the other bedroom, though that wasn't really hard Link slept like the dead. Her side protested to the movement, but after Zelda got outside it became a dull throb. The comfortable atmosphere of the city distracting Zelda from the pain.

It was nice, Zelda mused back in Hyrule Zelda would never be able to take a simple late night stroll. Well, she could but only with several guards at her side. Not a really relaxing environment when one had a dozen guards hovering around you.

The royal understood of course it was only for her own protection, but the limitations of ruling her kingdom sometimes felt suffocating. It was a gilded cage of course, but Zelda tired not to think that way. After all there were many out there that would trade places with her in a heartbeat.

Breaking from her thoughts Zelda realized she was several blocks away from her temporary home already. The Princess had just been walking with no real direction in mind. Looking around Zelda had never been to this part of the city before. Most of the stores and buildings' lights were out signaling they were closed for the night. The only one that brightened the street was a large building with a sign reading Diesel's Shipyard and Garage. Clearly it was not a shipyard for boats like Zelda was used to in Hyrule. Thinking back to the flying ship they fought on Zelda began to wonder.

Stepping inside the building looked even bigger from within, and Zelda found herself looking at a massive room filled with ships similar to the one her and Samus fought on.

"Good evening Miss!" A cheery voice snapped Zelda from her musings. Not far from the front entrance was a simple counter where a young man no older than sixteen was standing at attention waiting to assist his late night customer.

"Would you like to dock a ship, or request repairs?" Zelda approached the counter, the young employee awaited her answer.

"Actually no I'm afraid I don't understand these ships much. Let alone own one, but I was wondering if you could help me." The Princess smiled politely following a hunch. She assumed that Samus might own a vessel similar to the ship they fought on. The hunter clearly had advance technology if their suit was any indication.

"Sure thing Miss what can I help you with?" The boy asked happily, whether he was truly happy to be serving a customer this late Zelda didn't know.

"Do you know if Samus Aran owns a ship here?" Zelda didn't even get to get any other words out before the boy's eyes widened.

"Samus Aran! I got to see them earlier it was so cool!" He exclaimed looking like the children back at Hyrule who would stare at Zelda in awe.

"You know Samus?" Zelda managed to ask before the boy excitedly said anything else. It was then the boy blushed and looked embarrassed.

"I'm from the same dimension as Samus. I got a job here and in exchange I get to stay to watch the tournament. Aran saved my planet from space pirates, so I guess I just admire them a lot. Wait...you're Samus' teammate what's your name?" He trailed off unable to recall the Princess' name.

"Princess Zelda," Zelda introduced giving a polite smile. It was strange, being royalty normally she had the problem of people recognizing her. It was a pleasant feeling Zelda concluded, if only the same could happen back home in Hyrule.

"Right! I'm Joey, but you're looking for Samus. They're working on their ship just down there. Bright orange ship you'll probably hear them working, can't miss it!" Zelda thanked the employee before heading down in the direction he told her.

He had been right Zelda heard several clanging, and other noises before she caught sight of an orange vessel. It didn't look anything like the other ships. Samus' ship actually reminded the Princess of the hunter's helmet. A vibrant green window and an orange coloring to match Samus' armor. Zelda thought the ship suited the hunter perfectly.

The hunter in question Zelda saw was sitting on a large tool box next to a pile of sheet metal, seemingly taking a break from their work. Looking at the ship there were patches that were not orange and more like the metal that sat next to the hunter. They must have been replacing the outer hull of the ship.

Samus' form was hunched as if in thought. Like always their armor was on, and to Zelda's displeasure the metal armor still had some clear damage from the match earlier that day.

"Samus?" The Princess gently tried to get Samus' attention, not wanting to interrupt their thoughts. The helmet snapped up looking to the Princess. Samus tilted their head standing up to face the royal. Their arm cannon glowed then changed back to an armored hand.

"Did I disturb you?" Samus shook their head before giving a questioning tilt of their helmet, no doubt wondering what Zelda was doing out so late.

"I thought you would own a flying ship, so I figured I'd find out. That boy at the counter is quite enamored by you. He says you saved his planet from pirates." Samus merely shrugged in a not a big deal sort of fashion. Zelda smiled and shook her head. She wished she had the knowledge to understand Samus' sign language better. The Princess still only knew a few phrases and signs. Not enough to ask about the planet the hunter apparently saved. She could have asked Joey, but the Princess had been too focused on finding her teammate.

Samus' visor lite up the expressionless helmet looking at Zelda. The Hyrule royal gave the hunter a look knowing by now that if Samus' visor was glowing. It meant the hunter was making sure she was okay.

"I'm fine, I'll be as good as new in a few days." As if the universe wanted to prove the Princess wrong a sharp pain reminded Zelda the burn was still very raw. Samus crossed their arms helmet tilting as the Princess flinched heavily.

"If I admit it hurts a little will you stop looking at me like that?" The hunter shrugged as if saying "What look?". Zelda sighed but that only made her burn ache more. This time Samus moved to help the Princess. Zelda mentally cursed the doctors had given her medicine for the pain, but it must be wearing off. They probably intended Zelda to fall asleep before the medicine wore off. That why she would already be in blissful sleep before any serious pain took hold.

Samus offered their hand to the Princess. When Zelda took it they guided her over to sit on the tool box they once sat on. The hunter held up a finger signaling Zelda to wait a moment. Samus jumped onto their ship disappearing when the hatch on top allowed them entrance. A minute or two later the hunter reappeared jumping down from the ship. Samus handed Zelda a small mug containing a warm steaming liquid.

"What's this?" Zelda took the offered cup, the warm mug feeling nice in her hands. Looking in the cup, the steaming liquid was a dark blue almost like a some kind of juice or wine. Zelda looked to Samus and the hunter made a series of signs speaking to the Princess.

" _It will help the pain."_ Samus signed pointing to the cup she gave Zelda. In the back of Zelda's head she could hear every lesson she ever had on politics telling her drinking an offered drink could be a ploy to poison her, but Zelda was beginning to see the aloof hunter as her friend. Experimentally Zelda took a sip then she took another when the drink proved safe. It tasted almost like tea except with a pleasant flavor Zelda never had before.

"Thank you, you didn't have to though. I should have stayed at home and rested." The hunter shrugged in no big deal fashion.

" _You were in pain."_ Samus signed simply as if their reasoning was obvious. Zelda smiled taking another drink. She could feel the tea like drink warming up her entire body. The aches and pains from the battle earlier dulled. Zelda feeling her body relax from the drink she smiled at the hunter. Samus truly was nothing like what others thought them to be.

"Samus can I ask you something?" The hunter nodded awaiting what the Princess wanted to ask.

"May I see what you look like under that helmet?" The hunter looked at Zelda, perhaps surprised at her request. The Princess originally thought if she waited Samus would reveal their face in time, but she was curious and Samus didn't seem like someone to get mad over a simple request.

"You don't have to if you don't want to, but I'd like to see who has been so kind to me. I understand though if you wish to keep yourself hidden." Really Zelda couldn't pinpoint an exact reason Samus would wear their armor all the time just yet. It was clear to her though that Samus hid more than just their face under that armor. They were known as a killing machine with no remorse that fought without mercy. Zelda didn't see it though. Samus radiated strength and power, but the hunter only used it in the field. Outside of battle the hunter calmly lingered about their business. Zelda believe people were letting their fear of the hunter in battle blind them to the fact that there was someone inside that armor.

Zelda offered Samus a friendly smile, and the hunter seemed to sigh shaking their head. A click was heard and air hissed out around the helmet. Samus pulled the helmet off and Zelda's eyes widened. They or more importantly she was not the Princess expected to be under the armor.

Samus was a serious looking woman with sharp features and pale skin, no doubt from the amount of time they spent in the armor. She had long golden hair tied up into a ponytail with her bangs hanging messily around her face. Her expression was drawn clearly not used to someone seeing their actual face, not just the helmet. There were small scars that marred the huntress face. A thin line that started at her jaw line and disappeared under her armor, and another mark that ran horizontally against the huntress' cheek. Like a projectile of some kind that had grazed the side of her face but never healed. Zelda found herself drawn to the huntress' eyes though. A cool blue reminding Zelda of Lake Hylia, but there was something about them that made Zelda inwardly frown. They were hollow most people had a light in their eyes, but Samus had a haunted look. It was the look Zelda had seen in soldiers that had seen horrible things.

Placing her now finished drink on the tool box. Zelda stood up smiling happy the huntress trusted her enough to show her their true face.

"I'll admit you're not what I expected, but it's nice to actually see your face." Samus shrugged nonchalantly, and Zelda could see the huntress' face showed indifference. She may be used to hiding her face, but clearly Samus was just as good at hiding her emotions without the armor as she was with it.

"Plus, I don't have to guess what you're saying now." Zelda liked to think she was good at reading someone's face. It was actually surprising to her how well she was able to decipher what Samus attempted to tell her when the helmet was on.

Samus ran a metal clad hand through her hair looking away. It was almost humorous how the hunter stared down Ganondorf no problem, but couldn't look at Zelda without their helmet hiding her face. Seeing the huntress was on edge Zelda did the first thing that came to mind. She reached out and took Samus' hand. The huntress looked at her surprised, her eyebrows drew in confusion.

"You know I don't see you any differently right now. You're still the same with or without the armor. I just wanted to see what my friend looked like. If you're more comfortable leaving it on that's fine." Samus seemed to pause when Zelda called her friend. She mouthed the word and looked at Zelda her eyebrows furrowed.

"We may be here to fight each other, but I don't see why can't be friends. Well, I hope I can call you friend." Taking a note from Peach's philosophy Zelda said. Though there was an uncertainty to her voice, afraid the huntress would reject any form of friendship between them.

Samus didn't look like they were opposed to it. She actually looked rather confused, as if no one had ever tried to be friends with her. Removing her hand from Zelda the huntress made a quick sign.

" _Why?"_ Zelda frowned without the helmet Samus was able to mouth the word as well making it a little more clear what she was attempting to say.

"Why would I want to be friends with you?" Samus nodded, looking completely serious.

"Is there a reason I shouldn't?" The huntress' eyebrow rose her expression saying that it should be obvious why she shouldn't. Zelda crossed her arms giving the huntress a stern look.

"If you say it's because you're a dangerous bounty hunter. I won't accept that." Zelda was now thoroughly convince any rumors claiming Samus was some heartless killer were completely untrue. Someone who looked confused at the idea that someone would want to interact with them was not heartless at all.

"We're already teammates, from my experience friends work better together in battle. It's only logical that we would want to work together in the best possible way. So Samus friends?" Zelda offered Samus her hand, inwardly thinking this must seem humorously childish. It felt right though neither of them knew much of true friendships. Samus being isolated for far too long, and Zelda living the sheltered life of royalty.

Samus must of felt the same as she took Zelda's hand, and for the first time her lips upturned into a small smile. Still it made the huntress looked as if years of hardship slipped away for a brief moment. Without the haunted gaze in her eyes Zelda couldn't help but admire how beautiful the huntress was.

The two spent the rest of the night talking, well Zelda talking Samus signing occasionally in order to speak. Samus kept her helmet off allowing Zelda to see her face. It was the most pleasant evening Zelda has had in a long time. Samus would let Zelda talk or ramble about anything, and she would still listen giving a nod or a shrug to prove it. She seemed quite content to listen to Zelda, and Zelda found herself more comfortable talking to the hunter than even Link. He was Zelda's closest and perhaps only real friend, but she could not expect him to spend every moment with her. That put somewhat of a distance between them. Link was free to do anything he wished, he could travel the world or spend his day at Lon Lon Ranch. Zelda would never hold this against him, but this left her alone under the constant scrutiny of others.

Zelda was supposed to be the wise benevolent Queen. There was always a certain expectation for how she was to act. One could see it in the eyes of all who looked upon the ruler. They would stare watching the Princess' every move judging for even the slightest misstep. It was exhausting sometimes, but Samus didn't have that look.

Zelda would imagine Samus didn't even care that Zelda was royalty. After all she was from a different world with no knowledge of Hyrule. For all Samus knew Zelda wasn't really a princess, and that was fine with her if Samus thought that. It was nice to just talk to someone as Zelda.

The night went on and it wasn't until Zelda was nearly asleep did they stop. Exhaustion from the battle finally taking hold her. Samus walked with Zelda back to her temporary home, the Princess leaning heavily on the hunter. Zelda sleepily told Samus good night, and the hunter signed the same. Before she turned heading back to what Zelda imagined was to go to bed herself.

Entering the house, Link was still snoring away, sleeping like the dead. Letting Zelda slip back into her room without disturbing him. Zelda's head hit her pillow, and the Princess was out like a light. The pain from her wound forgotten a peaceful smile on her face.

The peace didn't last though. Strange dreams were common to Zelda. Being the bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom. Zelda often had dreams that were more prophesies than simple images to be forgotten upon the morning sun. Through these dreams Zelda had foresaw many events even if she didn't understand what her dreams were trying to warn her of.

Tonight Zelda's world was dark a suffocating blackness all around her. Zelda tried to weave her way through to find some source of light, but there was nothing. Out of the dark though Zelda saw a figure. At first she felt joy upon spotting familiar bright orange armor, as Zelda ran to her friend everything went wrong.

She heard a cold sinister laugh that sent chills down her spine, and when she reached Samus she gasped in horror. The hunter appeared to be in agony bent over gasping at unseen wounds. Zelda went to rush to her side, but another laugh stop Zelda in her tracks. Behind the hunter strings came from the darkness imbedding themselves in Samus' back. No sounds came from the silent metal warrior, but blood began seeping through the armor where the strings were attached. The laugh returned again, but this time the voice spoke.

"Rise," tension drew on the strings, and Samus rose to her full height. Zelda was frozen her heart beating faster than a humming bird.

"Kill her," before Zelda could even fathom what was happening. A cold metal hand was wrapped around her throat. She was lifted off the ground staring into Samus' emotionless visor.

"Samus stop." Zelda gasped as air was robbed from her lungs. She clutched onto the hand in a feeble attempt to remove it. The metal hand holding her trembled, and Zelda thought she was about to let go. When the voice yelled out.

"Kill her!" It demanded the strings were yanked painfully dark scarlet blood seeping from the armor. The trembling in the hand stopped, and Zelda felt the last of her life being squeezed away.

Zelda woke snapping up completely ignoring her burn protesting to the movement. She soon realized she was safe in her bed. Wiping the sweat from her forehead Zelda took several gulps of air trying to calm down. Sunlight was streaming through the window, and Zelda heard shuffling from downstairs. Link must be awake and making himself breakfast.

Collapsing back into bed Zelda covered her eyes with her arm. A cold sweat still covered her body, and the Princess trembled recalling every detail of the horrid dream. Zelda always believed her dreams were the goddesses' way of warning of certain events, but could they really be trying to warn her that Samus was going to hurt her. No, Zelda refused to believe it. Samus told her she would not hurt her, and Zelda believed the silent warrior. Zelda would not become one of the many who feared Samus blindly. The hunter was her friend, her teammate, Samus would never harm her Zelda thought stubbornly.

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 _ **A.N. You all thought this was going to be a happy chapter didn't youXD. Don't worry there will be happy chapters to come with just fluffy bonding time with Samus and Zelda. I am trying to make a balance in this story with the action moments. Since the last chapter was just one long battle scene the next few will focus more on the characters.**_

 _ **With that note reviews are loved, and I will see you in the next chapter!^^**_


	8. A Day at the Park

_**A.D. Sorry for how long it's been guys. Been a little busy with college and whatnot, but on the bright side I haven't stopped writing this. I've written up to chapter 11 those chapters just need edited, and once again thank you all for the advice on my**_ ** _grammar and punctuation. I try my best to fix these chapters up, but I'm still not the greatest at it(I'm down right terrible at itXD). Anyway I'll keep trying to get better so the story is easier to read. Enjoy the chapter party people, I'll try to post on a more regular basis.^^_**

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Chapter 8 A Day at the Park

Pikachu's ears flicked, searching for any noises rustling among the trees. Subspace hosted a large park big enough to allow various flora to grow. The yellow pokemon stopped trotting on his four little legs, clutching the frisbee he carried with him tightly in his jaw. Looking around he found no one around, leaves blew gently in the wind, and crickets chirped happily to their midnight tunes.

It was rare for Pikachu to be out this late, he was not a nocturnal pokemon. Normally he would happily be asleep at the pokemon center resting for the coming battles, but there was an exception to this normal routine.

Walking deeper into the park trees hide most of the area from view, and like the pokemon knew there was the person he was searching for deep with the woods. Under one of the larger trees sat the warrior clad in metal, Samus. Unlike most Pikachu felt no fear as he trotted over to the hunter.

Pikachu could smell the fear and anxiety that others gave off when around the hunter, but the pokemon had long stopped having such feelings himself. It was not that Pikachu was foolish, no if anything Pikachu understood how dangerous Samus could become more than anyone. Their relationship was one Pikachu could only compare to pokemon and trainer. Though Pikachu loved his trainer back in his own world. Samus had proven she was someone Pikachu could turn to and follow if he needed to. Pokemon were just like that, they needed someone to partner themselves with. It was the only way that they could truly become stronger.

During the first tournament Pikachu had felt lost without his trainer backing him up. The yellow pokemon had stumbled upon Samus training one day, and he attempted to join her sensing how much he could learn from her. At first the huntress denied him, but Pikachu was persistent. He could feel the strength behind the hunter, and he wanted to better himself under such a powerful force.

It was slow, but eventually Samus began letting him stick around as she trained. At first she wouldn't allow him to join. She would give him a snack she bought from some store, and continue her own practicing. With time though the pokemon began practicing with the battle hardened huntress. Samus was just as strong as he thought she was, Pikachu discovered. It was clear since the first day that they began training together. That if Samus wanted to she could completely destroy half of the fighters present at the tournament.

After battling against the huntress for so long the pokemon was able to tell the metal warrior was holding back. Even in the real matches she was always holding something back.

It was something no ordinary human would notice. A fist losing momentum just before impact, a slight adjustment to where a projectile was going to hit. Pikachu's instincts told him just how close the huntress was to making a killing blow, but she would always stop short of doing it. It was in the huntress' own instincts to go for the kill. Whatever went on in the hunter's dimension, caused her to become the battle harden warrior she was, ready to make a kill at the drop of a hat. She always held back though never truly becoming the machine that the other fighters made her out to be.

Except for the newcomer to the ring Pikachu had noted. The pointed ear woman that smelled of ink and paper with a hint of lavender, she had been paired to fight alongside Samus for the beginning of the tournament. Pikachu had been disappointed it wasn't him to be paired with the huntress, but the royal looking woman proved to be a friend. Unlike everyone else, there was no fear coming from her when Samus was around. If anything Pikachu could feel the hylian relax whenever in the huntress' presence. It made the pokemon extremely happy knowing the newcomer could see the huntress meant no harm.

Before fully approaching the hunter, Pikachu dropped his frisbee. Lowing his form closer to the ground, he slinked over to the metal warrior. Samus was sitting unmoving under the tree. With her legs crossed arms resting on her legs the hunter sat unmoving, not acknowledging the approaching pokemon. Pikachu knew the hunter was aware of his presence, the visor did not move from its forward stare to look at him though.

Like a cat Pikachu crawled onto Samus lap worming his way under her arms. The hunter didn't respond, and Pikachu whined. Pikachu like most knew little about Samus. As a pokemon he was quite smarter than your average animal, but even he understood little about what went on in that metal helmet. He did know one thing however.

Samus was in pain.

Not the kind of pain one got from an injury, but a pain that made the hunter come to this park nearly every night. And do nothing but sit and stare ahead lost to the entire world.

Pikachu nudged the hunter's palm trying to gain her attention. Samus' head twitched as if waking from a dream. Her bright green visor looked down at the pokemon in her lap.

"Pika!" The yellow pokemon excitedly cried, nuzzling the warrior's stomach. Some might think that would be uncomfortable for Pikachu because of Samus' cold armor, but Pikachu didn't care. Samus was in pain and the pokemon had no clue what caused it, or how to stop it.

Rolling over on his back Pikachu tried to get the hunter to rub his stomach. Though to an outsider it may seem like the pokemon was just begging for attention for his own benefit. In reality it was Pikachu's way of stopping the hunter from distantly staring again.

Samus responded giving Pikachu the attention he was demanding. Pikachu happily made an almost purring sound.

"Chuuuu," the pokemon flipped back upright now that Samus was firmly out of whatever dark state possessed her. Samus patted Pikachu's head gently, she was always gentle. Despite her appearance the huntress was always considerate of others space, careful to not hurt them or cause destress.

Then the hunter pointed up at the sky above. The moon shone high above, stars dotting the sky like a million fireflies. It was a silent scolding telling the pokemon he should be sleeping.

"Pika!" The pokemon's tone was harsh, scolding the hunter as well. Pikachu had watched his silent companion today fighting off the plumber and turtle creature. The metal clad warrior had to be tired, yet they didn't sleep. He had thought the huntress had retired to her ship, but apparently she still found herself out here. Pikachu knew it had to do with whatever brought the hunter out here any other time, but it was still frustrating since he had no clue what was bringing the hunter pain.

Pikachu was still just a pokemon, he just had his instincts to go on. The only thing he was able to understand fully was that Samus was in pain, and he couldn't fix it. The pokemon whined curling close to the hunter. Samus scratched behind his ears trying to console the pokemon not knowing Pikachu was upset because Samus was upset.

The metal warrior's head turned to see the toy the pokemon brought with him. Reaching over she grabbed the frisbee presenting it to Pikachu. The pokemon perked up immediately.

This was their routine nearly every night since Pikachu first discovered the hunter came here during the first tournament. Samus would come to this spot deep in the park, and sit under the tree. Pikachu would follow soon after with a ball or some toy. Then he would demand the huntress play with him. Samus would comply doing whatever the pokemon had in store for her whether throwing a frisbee or racing the pokemon through the park.

The two did this any night Pikachu found the hunter away from her ship. Pikachu may never find what caused the hunter pain, but the least he could do was distract the huntress from the dark thoughts that plagued her.

Samus threw the frisbee careful that it flew down the clearest path away from any trees. Pikachu raced after it his small legs quickly carrying him to run under the frisbee as it glided through the air. The pokemon easily jumped and caught the flying disk, bringing it back to Samus.

"Pika!" Samus took the offered toy before petting the pokemon's head. Pikachu made a noise of happiness. It certainly was a strange friendship, but Pikachu wouldn't it have it any other way.

* * *

"I don't get why the Master Hand would let Ganondorf in the tournament, did you see his last match?" Link's voice was tense showing the Hero's concern over the dark lord's presence. Zelda frowned she did indeed see the evil king's first match today. The Gerudo King dominated his opponents with his brute strength and dark magic. He didn't even need his teammate's aid.

It was clear that he was not at the level he was when Link faced him in their own world. However, he was still a forced to be reckoned with, and Zelda was sure that if she was alone she would have little chance against him.

"I'm more worried about what he is planning outside the arena." Zelda had yet to get a chance to tell Samus about her dream, or come up with a way to explain it to her that the dream could very well be predicting events to come. The Princess was finding that for an over six foot tall heavily armored metal clad warrior. Samus was very good at making herself scarce when she wanted to. Though they called each other friend now Zelda was still far from fully understanding Samus.

"Between him and metalhead I'm going to be spending more time fighting them off than in the actual tournament." Link's tone was joking, but Zelda gave him a stern glare.

"Samus would never hurt me, and please do not call her that." Zelda did feel a bit guilty that she wasn't telling Link everything that was going on with her silent teammate. The Princess has been so focused on becoming closer to Samus. That she hasn't taken the time to sit down and talk with Link. To make up for it since Zelda couldn't do any training anyway with her still injured side the two took a walk in the park today. Though Zelda's healing wound still ached, the Princess ignored it determined not to let it hold her back.

"Yah, yah, wait….her?" The Hero was about to brush off Zelda's defense of the metal warrior when he caught on to the pronoun Zelda referred to the hunter by. Zelda mentally cursed herself, she didn't know if Samus wanted her identity to remain a secret. She didn't seem like someone to withhold information if someone asked, but it still didn't sit well with the Princess.

"Just a slip of the tongue, I meant them. Don't call them that Link." Link leaned closer to the Princess, an accusatory look on his face.

"No, Princess Zelda doesn't have a 'slip of the tongue'. Samus is a girl?" Zelda sighed there was no use trying to lie.

"Yes, Samus is a woman." Zelda didn't even get to finish her sentence before Link was shooting off questions.

"How do you know?" The Princess shook her head in exasperation, Link really needed to learn to be patient.

"I asked her to show me what she looks like under the helmet, and she did." Link stopped walking at Zelda's simple statement, his eyes wide.

"You just asked Samus to take off her helmet and she did. We tried that last tournament and the robot just walked away!" Zelda's eyes narrowed she really was starting to hate it when someone called Samus a robot. It wasn't the fact that people believed Samus mechanical that bothered her. If Samus had truly been a machine it wouldn't change Zelda's thoughts about her. The huntress was kind, and probably one of the most calm people Zelda has ever met. What bothered the Princess was the tone people used when calling Samus that. An insulting note to their voice that said that they never stopped to actually prove the insult right.

"I somehow doubt you asked in the same context as me." The Hero gave Zelda a dirty look.

"Fine we were trying to get them to drink at a bar at the same time, but that's not the point!" This time Zelda stopped Link before he could continue.

"No the point is you need to give Samus a chance." Link crossed his arms frowning.

"Alright I admit I might be being a little unfair, but what do you really know about Samus? How can you be one hundred percent sure she's not dangerous?" Zelda frowned, why did everyone so firmly believed Samus was dangerous. Was it the fact nobody knew anything about her. Zelda wanted to know about Samus, but she didn't understand sign language well enough. It was so unfair Samus could be a noble hero in her world, but everyone believed her the villain.

"Samus promised me she would never hurt me. She has given me no reason not to trust her, nor you for that matter. All she did was beat you in a competition. Let it go." Her statement might have actually angered the Hero as his eyebrow twitched.

"She didn't just beat me! I stabbed her in the stomach Zelda, and she still kept going! If that was a real fight I would be dead. I know you want to see the best in people, but I don't think there is anything good about someone who fights like Samus." Link always believed one could tell a lot about someone by how they fought. Ganondorf was powerful and wild like the monster he truly was. Zelda was graceful, precise just like the wonderful ruler she was. To Link, Samus was just as much as a machine as she appeared to be. Cold and without care or regard for the life that was in front them.

Link stormed off in a huff frustrated that his friend would not see what he saw. Zelda sighed, continuing to walk alone. She hoped Link wouldn't have reacted so to her continued defense of Samus. It pained Zelda that she was causing them to be at odds, but Samus was no enemy. She refused to alienate the hunter like everyone else was happily doing.

Not wanting to run into Link Zelda went off the beaten path the park had laid out for people. The park was large enough to house a small woodsy area. Tall oak trees rustled as their leaves blew in the gentle wind. The Princess admired the calm atmosphere as she began making her way deeper into the hidden grove the trees offered.

Something caught her eye though, a familiar orange and red. Quietly Zelda crept over to the bright armored form sitting under a nearby tree. Samus sat her back leaning against the tree, her head leaning slightly forward. Was she sleeping? Zelda stepped lightly kneeling down next to the huntress, withholding a giggle when she noticed Pikachu curled up on Samus' lap snoozing away.

"Samus?" The Princess whispered still not entirely convinced Samus was asleep. There was no response not even the slightest twitch. Pikachu's ears did flick hearing Zelda's soft voice. He merely adjust his position however, continuing to sleep. Experimentally Zelda waved her hand in front of Samus' visor only to let out the most un-princess like squeak when Samus snatched Zelda's hand in mid air.

The hunter let go immediately raising her head to look at the Princess. Samus' helmet twitched, and Zelda felt that the huntress was silently laughing at the fright she gave Zelda. It brought a smile to Zelda's face thinking that Samus was becoming more comfortable around the royal.

Still the Princess huffed seemingly mad at the surprise.

"Not funny, Samus." Samus shook her head, it clearly was humorous to her. She adjusted herself to sit up straighter the pokemon in her lap stirred at the motion. Pikachu yawned stretching his small limbs. Looking around Pikachu hopped off the hunter greeting Zelda with a happy cry. He didn't stick around however, he must of realized how long he had been with Samus. As the pokemon quickly grabbed a frisbee Zelda just noticed was sitting nearby before running off.

With Pikachu gone Zelda looked to the hunter.

"May I join you?" Samus nodded moving over a bit so Zelda could sit against the tree as well. Zelda settled down next to Samus wincing a little as her wound flared up with pain.

Samus visor was aglow upon seeing the Princess wince. Zelda poked the hunter in the ribs looking stern.

"Stop that, I'm fine who knew the big scary bounty hunter would be such a worry wort." It was sweet that Samus was looking out for her. The huntress behind all that armor both the physical and emotional was truly a kind hearted person. If only everyone else could see that, Zelda mused.

Samus visor did stop glowing, and the hunter appeared to huff in an indignant fashion. Zelda grinned the hunter's subtle gestures never failing to bring a smile to her face.

"Were you taking a nap out here?" It was strange to think of Samus doing such normal things like sleeping. Zelda had yet to see Samus even take a drink of water. Though she knew the huntress was mortal and needed such things. Samus just seemed like an unstoppable force that didn't need such mundane things like rest. It was ridiculous of course Zelda knew Samus was not infallible, but it was the aura that surrounded the huntress that made her seem indestructible.

Samus shrugged signing out a simple reply.

" _Just resting."_ The relaxing environment of the park did seem like a nice spot to unwind for a while. This must be where Samus disappeared to whenever she wasn't training or with her ship.

The two enjoyed each other's company as silence descended between them. The quietness was never awkward with the huntress. Samus could say a lot with a simple gesture, and just sitting with Zelda told the Princess that she enjoyed the royal's company.

Zelda became tense though remembering that she still needed to tell Samus about her dream. She toyed with the idea of leaving it alone, but Zelda trusted the magic that brought these imagines to her. She firmly believed they were trying to warn her to prevent the worst from occurring.

The hunter noticed Zelda becoming tense, her green visor looked at the Princess. Samus' unspoken question of what's wrong clear from her blank gaze. Zelda bite her lip embarrass Samus so easily read her.

"Samus has Ganondorf approached you at all since that first time?" There was a pause before the huntress responded by nodding. Zelda's blood ran cold not wasting a second she called upon her magic. The Princess didn't sense anything amiss about Samus. As far as she could tell there was no dark magic surrounding her. Samus looked confused at how worried Zelda had become. The royal sighed, Samus was ever calm, and Zelda wondered if the huntress ever worried about anything.

"Did he attack you again?" Samus didn't appear damaged, though there were a few scraps and scorch marks on the armor. But Zelda remembered those being there from their first match. It made Zelda frowned the huntress really should look after herself more.

Samus shook her head indicating Ganon didn't attack her. This made Zelda even more worried. What was Ganon planning? Looking to the hunter, Zelda wondered how Samus remained so unconcerned over the dark lord.

"How can you be so calm about this? Ganondorf is one of the most powerful forces in Hyrule." Samus tilted her head as if pondering the question. Zelda didn't think it was foolishness that caused Samus' lax attitude about the threat Ganon posed. The huntress seemed too logical to be so careless. Then the huntress signed a few simple words slow enough for Zelda to decipher them.

" _I've seen worse."_ The Princess frowned, she had always believed Ganon to be the worse the world had to offer. His evils knew no bounds, to think that Samus has seen worse than him was a frightening thought. Then again Zelda remembered the scars she saw on the huntress' face the other night. Samus' armor seemed nearly indestructible, but something had to have broken through to give her those wounds.

"I shuddered to think what's worse than Ganon." She voiced her thoughts, Samus didn't give any response. With nothing coming from the huntress Zelda continued speaking.

"I'm worried about what Ganon is planning, and last night I had a horrid dream. I know it may sound crazy to you, but the piece of the Triforce I have sometimes gives me visions of certain events to come. I was able predict Ganon's takeover of my world before thanks to these dreams." Samus seemed to be listening intently as Zelda explained. She didn't give any motions as Zelda went on explaining her dream to huntress, knowing that it may sound silly to a person from a technology driven world.

The huntress didn't scoff at Zelda though, she merely appeared thoughtful thinking over what the Princess just told her.

"I just want you to be careful around Ganondorf, Samus. I know he's up to something, and since you've denied him twice he won't likely forget it anytime soon." Zelda felt guilty for getting Samus involved in her and Link's quarrel against Ganondorf. It was too late for regrets though. Samus was her friend now, and she would not let Ganondorf harm her.

" _Don't worry, I'll be fine."_ Samus signed simply, though she didn't state she would be any more wary around Ganondorf. Zelda believed the huntress' word that she would be fine.

"I'd imagine you would. You are probably the strongest fighter here after all, but it doesn't hurt to be careful though." At the compliment of her skills Samus looked away shrugging. Zelda smiled the huntress' humble nature was quite endearing. Clearly Samus wasn't used to people praising her skills.

"Let's talk about some else. I'd rather my thoughts not be consumed with the threat of Ganon." Samus nodding agreeing with the statement. Silent as always though she left it to Zelda to pick a topic.

For almost half the day the two sat under the tree. Zelda enjoying the pleasant company the huntress offered, and Samus for once relaxing completely, listening to the Princess speak. It was such a normal thing to sit and relax with friends, but the huntress and Princess were both far from normal. A pleasant day under the shade of the woods what more could anyone ask for.

* * *

 _ **A.N. How I love writing Samus, among the many headcanons I have about her. Samus being an insomniac is one of them, I'd imagine Samus is used to going long times without sleep(plus she's not very fond of sleeping due to nightmares). Despite what speed runners of metroid games would have us believe. I don't think realistically Samus could trek around entire planets on foot while fighting monsters, and finish her mission within an hour or two. So she's bound to be used to being awake for maybe days while on a mission.**_

 _ **Anyway, this chapter I wanted to show Samus and Zelda relationships outside of each other for a bit. They're both people who value their friends very highly, so I don't want to leave out Link and Pikachu. Plus tension since our green hero is still mistrustful of Samus. I can't wait for when Link finally starts to trust Samus, because in my mind they would be good friends. Zelda will be annoyed though because she'll have two super protective heroes fusing over her safety.**_

 _ **Enough of my rambling though, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Reviews are loved as always and I'll see you guys next chapter.^^**_


	9. Do Hunters Relax

_**A.N. Hey everybody! Got another fluffy chapter for you lovely readers^^. I'm trying to work on this as much as I can, but I'm busy as always with class and work. I've got things planed out till the end of the first tournament. I'm planning on finishing the melee tournament in a couple of chapters there will be a short interlude between melee and brawl. Then I'll get to the real fun stuff in brawl, I do plan on covering the subspace emissary, hope you guys will stick around till then;). With that enjoy the chapter.**_

* * *

Chapter 9 Do Hunters Relax

Zelda tore her eyes from the book she was reading taking a glance at the huntress sitting across from her. Across the small wooden table was Samus lounging in her chair, feet propped up on the table. A book held almost lazily in her one hand, by far it was probably the most relaxed Zelda has ever seen the metal warrior.

Today was a rest day of sorts, no matches were held as it was the weekend, and although Zelda was completely healed by now. It seemed like a shame to waste such a day fighting when there were no matches to be had. Somehow Samus had ended up joining the Princess on her trip to the library. Where now the two relaxed, though Zelda kept sneaking glances at the metal warrior.

She wasn't sure if Samus was even reading, the huntress' visor covered her eyes hiding if she was truly interested in what they were doing. Zelda's only true friend up till now being Link made it odd to be doing something non action oriented like reading. Back in Hyrule when she had the time Zelda would usually read alone in her study. There was nothing wrong with being alone, but it was odd to have the company.

It was not unpleasant though, Zelda had to say she was enjoying the time with her silent friend. Plus she was getting a glimpse at what interested the huntress. The few books Zelda saw Samus pick up usually involved engineering, astronomy, and other such scientific topics. Zelda had taken a look at one of books the hunter read, and while Samus did try to help her, the science behind future technology was beyond the Hylian royal. The Princess returned her attention to her own book happily losing herself within its contents.

When Zelda next looked up from her book she laughed seeing Samus was building a tower out of various books pulled from their shelves and left on the table. The huntress' visor glance at Zelda before focusing on balancing a rather thick book on top of two smaller ones making a small building of sorts.

"You know if you're bored you can go do something else." Zelda giggled covering her mouth with her hand in a ladylike manner. Samus shook her head, whether she was denying she was bored or saying she didn't want to do something else Zelda wasn't sure.

The huntress added another book to her construction careful not to make the structure fall. Zelda did note that Samus did seem focused on the task at hand. Perhaps the huntress did find building the tower more engaging than the books themselves.

"Not much of a reader are you then?" Zelda inquired watching as Samus continued to add more to the tower. Samus shook her head before stopping her building to sign to Zelda.

" _Never had the time."_ The Princess was getting better at understanding Samus with each day. Zelda was confidant by the end of this tournament she would be able to understand almost anything the huntress would sign to her.

"When that falls if you damage any of the book you'll get us both kicked out." Though getting kicked out of the library was definitely something Zelda didn't want. She wouldn't tell Samus to stop if it was amusing the huntress. If Zelda was honest she was happy to see the huntress doing something so silly. It meant Samus was letting her guard down, and was comfortable with Zelda's presence.

Samus shook her head again telling the Princess she was confident the tower wouldn't fall. Pausing in her construction since she ran out of books that were sitting on the table, Samus stopped to look at the building. Zelda had to admit for using books it looked fairly intricate almost like the actual workings of a real building.

Samus leant back in her chair to grab a book from the bookshelf behind her. The huntress glanced at what she grabbed, instead of adding it to the building though. She handed the book across the table to Zelda.

Zelda's eyebrow rose, sitting down her own tome, taking the one from the huntress.

"What's this?" She asked aloud knowing Samus couldn't verbally answer. Emblazoned on the cover Zelda read _Remnants of the Chozo vol.1_. Zelda glanced at Samus looking for an explanation. The hunter simply pointed at the book prompting Zelda to look through it. Opening the introduction Zelda skimmed the tome's contents.

 _The Chozo a race once the strongest and most highly advance in the galaxy, now only ruins of their might remain. The avian race's civilization use to span all over our galaxy. In this volume the lasting evidence of this great species will be explored…._

Zelda paused in her reading, Chozo? The Princess gave a look to the bounty hunter across from her.

"Are the Chozo from your dimension?" Zelda would imagine Samus wouldn't give her a book unless there was a point to it. The only explanation was Samus had some connection to this seemingly extinct race.

Samus nodded holding out her hand silently asking for the book. Zelda handed it over, and quickly Samus flipped to a certain page before giving it back. To Zelda's surprise on the page printed out was a picture of Samus. The huntress was depicted battling some horrid creature several other armored individuals combating the beast from the sidelines. Looking to the words printed next to the picture Zelda read.

 _Perhaps the most notable thing the Chozo left behind was the mystery of Samus Aran. Despite years of study scientists have still yet to make a single Chozo device work for human hands. Yet, the bounty hunter Aran wields a power suit of clear Chozo design. Though it is known that at one time the Chozo did take pride in their fighting prowess. There have been no Chozo warriors since the race took down the path of peaceful exploration(see vol.2 for more details on Chozo culture)._

 _Once employed by the Galactic Federation Aran has since become a freelance bounty hunter. Federation scientist continue to try and make heads or tails of the hunter's power suit. The details of how Aran came to have the Chozo made suit are ambiguous at best._

 _Some believe Aran stole it from one of the last Chozo warriors before the race disappeared. Others hypothesis that the hunter was given it by the last of the race, believing the Chozo intended for Aran to be some sort of galactic protector. Although attempts were made to contact the bounty hunter for information for this book. No responses were given…._

Zelda was so absorbed in her reading that Samus had to pluck the book from her grasp to get her attention.

"Hey!" Zelda tried to grab the book back, but the huntress held it high above her. The huntress lowered it once she had the Princess' attention though. With the book out of her grasp Zelda was back in the real world, realizing she could ask Samus about what the book spoke of.

"So the Chozo made the suit you wear?" Samus nodded, looking with what Zelda thought was fondness at the cover of the book.

"Why did they give it to you?" Zelda didn't waste time entertaining the thought that Samus might have stolen the suit. Samus definitely did not seem like a thief, so the Princess concluded that they must have given it to her.

" _It's a long story."_ The Princess gave Samus a pleading look wanting to know more. The huntress seemed to sigh before continuing to sign a response.

" _They raised me."_ Though Zelda was happy to know more about Samus. Zelda quickly remember what the book said about the Chozo. The bird like race was missing possibly extinct in Samus' dimension.

"Samus I…" The huntress must have been able to tell where Zelda was going, because she raised a hand to silence the Princess.

" _It's fine."_ Zelda could tell by the curt motions of Samus' hands that it was still a sore subject to the huntress.

"Were they your family?" Though Samus was clearly no member of the bird like race. The people that raised Samus must have treated her as one of their own.

Samus shrugged not committing a solid answer, and for the first time Zelda saw a completely different side of the huntress. Even with the helmet still on Samus didn't appear her normal picture of strength and power. Her body was slumping in her chair, head bowed not looking at Zelda. Her visor staring at the cover of the book that depicted a mural of the Chozo.

How horrible it must be for Samus, Zelda thought. If the Chozo raised her then that must mean Samus' original parents were gone as well. So not only were her birth parents gone, but the race that accepted her as their own had died out. If the book was any evidence it was clear that the people of Samus' world were more interested in the suit than the one wielding it. That must be a dark shadow that hung over the huntress thoughts, to have everyone they thought family gone forever.

Samus' free hand rested on the table the metal warrior still lost in her musings, staring at the picture of the Chozo. Zelda reached across the table gently taking the hand in her's. This brought Samus from her thoughts looking at Zelda. Before Zelda could say anything though a cheery voice called out her name.

"Zelda!" The Princess looked to see the pink clad Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom making her way over to them. Samus pulled her hand away all the walls coming back up. Once again Samus appeared the strong emotionless bounty hunter.

The huntress stared at Peach no doubt wondering what the blonde wanted. Zelda frowned at Samus' quick change to hide her moment of weakness, but she turned to smile at Peach. Not wanting to give the blonde any reason to think something was wrong.

"Peach, it's good to see you again." Mentally Zelda was cursing at the intrusion, since Samus was sharing a rare moment with her. She couldn't hold it against Peach for her poor timing though, despite how much Zelda wished the blonde could have waited a few minutes to interrupt them.

After greeting her fellow princess, Peach turned to the bounty hunter who gazed at her. Peach smiled though one could tell there was a level of uncertainty to it. Despite Peach telling Zelda that Samus likely had a good heart. It was clear that metal warrior still intimidated the Princess of Toadstools. Samus did cut a threatening form, even sitting down she was still taller than Peach only adding to the power Samus radiated. While Zelda was becoming adept at reading Samus through body language, others still only saw the silent emotionless wall.

"Samus right? I don't think we've met before, Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom at your service." Peach did a small curtsy smiling in a friendly manner at the huntress. Samus nodded silently greeting the blonde in her own way.

"I haven't really gotten the chance to see either of you since your first match. That was spectacular by the way you two work so well together! Much better than Mario and Bowser." The last statement was more to herself than the teammates, but Zelda could tell that Peach must be the peacekeeper between the hero and villain. The fact that the two managed to work together at all must have been the handy work of blonde princess.

"Thank you Peach, Samus did most of the hard work. I just helped a little." The Hyrule Princess said modestly, truly not thinking her role played that much in the battle. Getting her attention Samus tapped Zelda's hand still sitting on the table. The huntress quickly signed to her teammate leaving Peach looking confused.

" _You helped."_ The huntress signed, the manner she made the symbols with implying that Zelda was a great help in the fight. Zelda smiled at her teammate's blunt reassurance.

"You could have taken them on your own, you technically didn't need me to win." Samus waved her off signing a short maybe before crossing her arms. Showing that Samus wouldn't accept any form of rebuttal from Zelda, not that the Princess didn't try.

As the two went back and forth Peach watched from the sidelines inwardly giggling to herself. At first she was confused, as she didn't understand that the motions Samus made meant something, but watching them it was clear that at least Zelda could make something from them. The two teammates seemed to forget Peach was even there too caught up in their own discussion.

Even when Samus didn't make any motions Zelda still seemed to understand the huntress. Peach had to admit at first she was nervous about approaching Samus. After hearing all the horrid things the other fighters said about the metal warrior. It was hard not to let the imagination run wild, and let the intimidating figure overshadow what Samus was actually like.

Clearly there was a lot more to the machine looking fighter than the rumors implied. The bounty hunter was a lot different than what Mario had told Peach of. Mario had informed Peach to stay clear of Samus as the fighter was dangerous. Samus' world was one of dangerous monsters and villains, Samus among them. Peach of course had her doubts as Mario would tend to be a little overprotective at times, but watching the Princess of Hyrule interact with the warrior. The blonde princess believed the metal warrior was no danger to be feared. The metal warrior acted so differently than what one would expect considering the rumors that flew around about them, but that was fine in Peach's mind.

Zelda was different too Peach noted. When she last spoke to the ruler of Hyrule, she was restrained clearly keeping up the royal face. No doubt the Hylian was used to speaking with dignitaries and other royals, but not used to relaxing conversations with friends. Now though she was smiling and seemed much more free spirited. Peach smiled if Samus could make Zelda feel comfortable enough to relax as she was now. Then then the huntress must not be all bad.

Deciding it was time to regain the teammates attention Peach spoke up.

"I agree with Samus on this one, but that's not why I'm here. I needed to ask you both something." Peach broke the two up, holding in a giggle at the comical expression Zelda made when Peach sided with Samus. The Hylian Princess quickly regain her composure though, and gave Peach her attention.

"Of course what do you need Peach?" The royal face was back, and while Peach was sad that Zelda wasn't comfortable enough with her yet to relax completely she did find them for a reason.

"Well, since all of the opening fights are done. I figured before the tournament gets too competitive, I'd hold a little get together for all the fighters. After all a battle among friends is better than one full of enemies." There was no response from the metal warrior over the idea, but Zelda did appear interested in what Peach was saying.

"Anyway I'm going around asking everyone to come, so will you two be joining?" Peach had to admit she hit a stroke of luck catching Samus and Zelda together. The pink clad princess would bet that if anyone could get the antisocial bounty hunter to come it would be Zelda. Samus still showed no signs of agreeing while Zelda smiled in a friendly manner.

"I would love to, Samus will you be coming?" The Hyrule ruler prompted the hunter, who sat there as if pondering her options. Peach wanted to giggle but held it in watching the teammates. Once Zelda's gaze fell on the metal warrior their posture relaxed a little, and the hunter nodded. The princess of toadstools wanted to laugh, this was the evil mechanical warrior everyone feared. All Zelda had to do was give them one look, and the hunter agreed. Instead of laughing though, Peach clapped in her hands together in delight.

"Wonderful I'll see you two then." Peach gave them details of where the fighters were meeting and when. After the next round of matches were held the fighters would get together at the warp zone lobby to relax and properly meet everyone.

As Peach practically skipped away, out of the corner of her eye she watched the two get back to whatever they were doing.

"Samus! I was reading that! Some of us actually read the books give it back!" Peach didn't withhold the giggle this time listening to Zelda scold the huntress. It looked like the scary bounty hunter was not as bad as everyone said. At least as far when Zelda was involved.

* * *

"I warned you we were going to get kicked out." Despite the I told you so statement tone of her statement, Zelda was grinning. After Peach left the Princess had tried to get back to the book she was originally reading. Only to find while Peach had distracted her Samus had added it to her growing building of books. Of course Zelda tried to get the book back, only for it to end with all the books tumbling to the ground.

The librarian was less than pleased, and kicked the teammates out of the library. While it was technically Zelda who knocked over the books. The Princess stubbornly placed the blame on the huntress for taking her book in the first place.

" _You already read it."_ Samus defended herself talking about the book she took. Zelda blushed surprised Samus noticed such a detail. The Princess had indeed already read the tome, she didn't think Samus was paying attention to what she was reading though.

"Fine you win, but we're never going to the library again." If Samus could, Zelda believed the huntress would be laughing right now.

The two walked together with no real direction in mind, though Zelda enjoyed the company. The Princess hummed to herself thinking of the encounter with Peach. She was surprised Samus agreed to join the other fighters in Peach's little party. Even after seeing the more relaxed sillier side of the huntress. Samus seemed too stoic to enjoy such a thing as a party.

Besides most of the fighters were afraid of her, so it wouldn't really be an enjoyable experience. Zelda mentally shrugged away the thoughts. She was happy Samus would be joining in on the meetup. Things were still tense with Link, so having her silent friend around would be appreciated. Pushing the thoughts away Zelda wondered what she should do for the rest of the day. There was still plenty of daylight left, and Zelda figured she should enjoy the reprieve before the fighting kicked back up.

"Samus is there anything you'd like to do today?" Thus far the only thing Zelda has seen Samus do other than training was repair her ship. Like many things about Samus, Zelda wondered what the huntress did in her free time.

Samus gave Zelda a questioning look, tilting her helmet looking at the royal. The bounty hunter shook her head showing there was nothing she wished to do. Zelda frowned before poking the huntress' arm playfully.

"Come now, there must be something you want to do. It'd be a waste to not take this time to relax before we get back to fighting." Samus shrugged, but Zelda only folded her arms looking expectantly at the huntress. The two stared at each other in silent communication. Samus' expressionless visor has long since lost its intimidating effect to the Princess. For Zelda knew that there was a face under it looking back at her.

Samus relented appearing thoughtful for a moment. Zelda grinned at her victory, who knew the fearless bounty hunter would be so easy to convince. After a moment of thought Samus appeared to think of something, offering her hand to the Princess which she happily took.

The huntress leading them, Zelda saw Samus was bringing them to the garage where the huntress kept her ship. As they entered Zelda couldn't withhold the giggle as the young attendant Joey looked awestruck as Samus passed. The poor boy looked like he was about to faint from joy when Samus acknowledged him with a nod of her head.

It seemed Samus finished whatever repairs she was doing to the vessel before, as now the new orange steel gleamed in the garage lighting. The huntress let go of Zelda' hand, and the Princess found she missed the strong presence. She shook the thought away, as Samus was gesturing towards her ship.

"You want to fly your ship?" Samus nodded almost enthusiastically, normally Zelda would grin at such a display from the huntress. However remembering the battle on top the other flying ship. Zelda was less than thrilled at the thought of going on another one.

" _It's different when you're inside."_ As if sensing what was wrong Samus signed reassuring the Princess that there was no risk of falling out of the sky.

Samus helped Zelda up to reach the only entrance into the ship. The hatch at the center of the ship opened with a hiss of air. Looking down to make sure it was safe, Zelda took a step on the platform that with another hiss of air lowered her into the vessel.

Looking around the inside was a lot different from what Zelda expected. She would have thought strange futuristic technology everywhere, but instead it was almost homey.

About the size of a small apartment maybe, there was a small mini fridge and counter with what looked like a stove built into it. There was a bathroom area with a small shower at the other corner of the ship. Zelda did note there was no bed anywhere, she wondered where the huntress slept. At the front of the ship was the technology Zelda expected. There was a chair seated in full view of the window dozens of controls around it, no doubt used to command the small ship.

When Zelda moved out of the way Samus calmly jumped down like it was second nature to her not bothering to wait for the platform. The huntress motioned for Zelda to follow her to the front of the ship. Samus easily slipped into the chair that was clearly made for her in full armor. Zelda positioned herself next to Samus looking at all the control in wonder. It was amazing that Samus knew what everyone of them did. The technology of other worlds was truly remarkable.

On the armrest of Samus' chair was a smooth metallic sphere built into it. As soon as Samus touched it the whole ship seemed to hum to life. Dozens of controls lite up awaiting Samus' command. Letting go of the sphere Samus pressed several keys on one of the consoles, and Zelda felt the ship jerk as it lifted off the ground. Looking out the windshield confirmed the ship lifted itself off the ground.

Samus took hold of the sphere again and moved it forward, the whole ship followed suit. Zelda taking hold of the chair both to keep herself steady, and due sheer amazement at the vessel's movement. She watched as Samus guided the ship out of the garage through a large opening in the back of the building.

Once the ship was off the ground Zelda was surprised how stable it became. The only way one could tell they were moving was by looking out the window. Zelda had to withhold a gasp watching the ship take them higher and higher into the sky. There was nothing like this in Hyrule, unless you were a bird the sky was unattainable.

Breaking through the clouds the ship climbed high into the air, the streets below becoming mer lines and buildings being dwarfed by the height. Above the clouds Samus stopped their ascent, pressing a few keys to make the ship drift lazily through the air.

Standing up Samus offered her hand to Zelda, the Princess gave her an uncertain look remembering what being on the speeding ship was like before. Samus strong presence calmed her a little though, Samus always gave off a vibe that everything was fine.

The two exited the ship through the top hatch. Samus calmly walked over to the front of the ship and sat down, completely at ease even when they were thousands of feet in the air. Zelda followed suit moving carefully to sit next to the huntress.

Unlike in their battle, Samus' ship glided through the air at a gentle pace, or maybe they were still and just the clouds were moving. Zelda couldn't say, but she had to admit it was far more relaxing.

Beside her Samus helmet hissed as air was released from it. The huntress pulled off the helm revealing her face making Zelda feel even more at ease. Blonde hair fluttering in the breeze the huntress used her hand to comb back her bangs so they weren't in her face. Then Samus looked to Zelda, and the Princess felt her heart skip a beat. The bounty hunter looked completely at ease, even a small smile on her face.

The Princess felt herself relax, as if seeing Samus at ease settled any nerves Zelda had about being up in the air.

"I still prefer reading a book, but I admit this is amazing." If someone before the tournament would have told her she'd be flying through the air with a metal clad bounty hunter Zelda would have laughed at the thought of it. Yet here she was drifting through the clouds with her silent friend enjoying every second of it. All dark thoughts and worries that have been plaguing Zelda were forgotten. Her body relaxing Zelda unconsciously leaned against Samus, resting against the huntress. She didn't see it, but the battle hardened hunter blushed never having such contact in ages.

Despite the danger ahead things would work out, Zelda mused. Maybe it was just having Samus around, but when she had her teammate by her side Zelda felt invincible.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Samus is completely obviously to the fact she's being hella charming and romantic, and I enjoy writing that way too much. If Samus wasn't mute she'd probably tell Zelda all about her ship and how it works. Samus is a nerd just a super badass nerd that loves to fix up and fly her shipXD.**_

 _ **Also Peach why are you ruining their moment! I was yelling at myself when I decided to make Peach interrupt them, but don't worry Peach will be the captain of the SamusxZelda ship in this story, and Link her unwilling second in commandXD!**_

 _ **Anyway last note big thanks to everyone who reviewed, you guys are great! I do want to reply to a question a friendly guest reviewer asked. They wanted to know how far Samus was in the metroid timeline(ps. your head canons are awesome and nearly made me do a rewriteXD). To answer Samus has already gone through most of the timeline. Currently she has just recently finished through Super Metroid, it will be touched on in a few chapters, but I felt I should answer you^^.**_

 _ **If anyone else has any questions feel free to ask, or if you want to discuss M**_ ** _etroid or Zelda head cannons I'm always game for that. With that monster of a author's note see you guys next chapter!_**


	10. Heroes and Hunters

_**A.N. What's this? An update not too long after the last oneXD! I'm trying to get updates rolling a little more regularly for you lovely readers. Not much else to say other than enjoy for this one.^^**_

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Chapter 10 Heroes and Hunters

"Samus above you!" The huntress reacted quickly to Zelda's call, aiming her arm cannon skywards. Samus fired upon the large ape that was jumping from above attempting to smash her.

Zelda herself summoned Nayru's power to shield herself from the small mouse pokemon's electric attack. Pichu was far weaker than his evolved form, and while he was slightly quicker. Zelda found she easily repealed any of his attacks. Calling upon Din's power with a quick motion of her hand fire flung the pokemon into the rushing rapids flowing beneath them. Zelda resisted the urge to help the small pokemon, as she knew he would be teleported out before any real damage befell him. Still the distressed cries as he hit the water made the princess cringe.

Today's match Zelda and Samus found themselves fighting on a rickety platform suspended over a waterfall. Despite the fear of the wood giving out beneath her, Zelda had to admit it was still less perilous than the fight on the flying ship.

With Pichu defeated Zelda turned to help Samus with the great ape, Donkey Kong. This area must be from his world Zelda assumed, as the ape was in his element. With his partner gone though the odds were against him now.

The large primate was throwing blow after blow at the huntress. Samus dodged out of the way each time, but soon Donkey's fist nailed the bounty hunter in the stomach. The ape let out a cry of triumph going in for another hit. Samus ignoring any pain the blow caused her lashed out with her arm cannon bashing DK right in the skull. The ape made a roar of pain angrily punching the huntress. Side stepping Samus took hold of the ape's arm holding him there.

Zelda joined in quickly jabbing Donkey in the back, magic exploding against him. The ape recovered though spinning around his fists outstretched. Both Samus and Zelda were throw back the huntress grabbing onto a rock jutting out of the waterfall to stop herself from falling. While Zelda managed to grab the other side of the wooden platform keeping herself from meeting the rushing water below.

Before Zelda could pull herself up though a large hand took hold around her waist yanking her back up. Donkey Kong lifted Zelda up high with his one hand, and Zelda tried to use her magic to free herself. Kong didn't allow any room for escape with his other hand punching the struggling royal making Zelda's vision blur. The great ape kept his grip crushingly tight, Zelda hearing a crack ring in her ears.

The next thing Zelda knew she was on the ground picking herself back up. Acting on pure adrenaline she saw Samus viciously beating on the primate. Not letting the ape any chance to retaliate Samus landed hit after hit. A single glance from Samus was all Zelda needed, and fire went hurtling towards the two. Samus jumped out of the way, while DK went flying into the rushing water below.

The world around Zelda became blurry as they were teleported out. The Princess stumbled when the warp room came back into focus. Strong metal hands didn't allow the Princess to fall though.

"Thank you Samus," Zelda grumbled out covering her eyes with her hand. She hoped it wasn't going to become a staple of the tournament for her to get beat to the point of collapsing after each fight. Zelda's silent companion kept the Princess steady though, waiting patiently for when Zelda was ready to move.

Uncovering her eyes Zelda tried to blink away the blurriness only to see red lining her vision. Looking at her hand Zelda saw blood staining her glove a stark contrast to the normally pure white fabric. Taking a glance upwards Samus bright visor was watching her in what Zelda would guess was concern.

Zelda could feel the huntress guiding her off the warp pad, but her body seemed to be shutting down. Donkey Kong must have hit her rather hard, Zelda mused idly her mind becoming foggy. The Princess could see one of Samus' hands trying to sign something to her, but Zelda couldn't make out what. Between her vision blurring out and the red invading it, Zelda couldn't make anything out of the motions Samus was making.

Gritting her teeth Zelda tried to stand straight and walk to the infirmary, but she cursed her own weakness as darkness crept up on her. As her world darkened Zelda expected to feel like she was falling, but if anything the last thing Zelda felt was being lifted up.

* * *

Link's boots clicked against the metal floor as he hurried down the hallway towards the warp room. The Hero had been watching the Princess' match on the flatscreen in the lobby, and while he applauded Zelda victory. He could tell the Princess really took a beating this match. Unlike the hunter that was built like a tank, Zelda was more of a glass cannon. Plenty of power with her magic, but the Princess herself could easily be injured.

Though Link knew that if she collapsed on the warp pad it would teleport her to the infirmary. Zelda would be far too stubborn to allow such, she would try walking to the infirmary. Where no doubt she would end up collapsing along the way.

Despite the tenseness between them Link would always make sure the Princess was all right. Though Link still couldn't understand how such a kind compassionate person could stand or even befriend the cold metal warrior. The Hero tried not to think about it. As his own worries over Samus were putting a rift between the friends, and in Link's mind they've been through too much together to let something so trivial pull their friendship apart.

Turning a corner the warp room was right up ahead, but Link had to jump back to stop himself from running into a tall figure also turning around the hall. The Hero froze upon seeing who he had almost ran into. Samus was standing tall blank green visor staring at Link. The sight of the hunter isn't what made Link freeze though.

Zelda unconscious and bleeding was held in the metal warriors arms. Her lithe form limp, head resting against the hunter, she looked peaceful. If it wasn't for the blood running down her face one could have believed she was just sleeping.

The metal clad warrior's gaze locked with Link's for a second, but she turned away sidestepping Link continuing down the hall.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going!" Gripping the hilt of the master sword, Link planted himself in front of Samus again. The Hero was in complete protect the princess mode, and seeing her injured in the arms of the hunter made his blood boil.

That emotionless visor glared at Link in what he would bet was annoyance. The hunter adjusted the woman in her arms holding Zelda up for a moment with her one arm, using the other to point down the hall. Link turned to see the infirmary was what Samus was gesturing to.

Face heating up in embarrassment Link let go of the master sword's hilt. The hunter seemed to take this as the okay to keep moving, but Link stopped her again reaching out to Zelda.

"Here I'll take her, I'm sure you have other things you'd rather be doing." Though it was hard Link kept most of distrust for the hunter out of his voice. He really just wanted to get Zelda out of the hunter's hands. Link was very aware that Samus could easily snap any of Zelda's bones as she held the Princess. Samus simply shook her head easily moving past Link taking the injured Princess with her.

The Hero grumbled following behind the metal warrior. If it wasn't for the unconscious injured Princess in her arms, Link would bash his shield against their head. Though Link found the hunter's behavior strange, why would Samus care enough to carry Zelda to the infirmary herself? Despite what Zelda told him Link couldn't believe that there was a person inside that armor. Samus just seemed too mechanical to be human, and not just because of their appearance. Every move Samus made was precise, calculated, with the skills of someone who has fought much longer than Link has.

Zelda may tease him over being bitter that he lost last tournament, and maybe he was. However the Hero wasn't ashamed to admit there were warriors stronger than him. It's why he entered the tournament in the first place to find strong fighters to test himself against. He never expected to find someone like Samus though, the hunter's skills were on a whole another level.

Link could see the surprise on the infirmary staff at Samus' entrance, no doubt because Samus rarely if ever came here. They quickly recovered though ordering Samus to lay Zelda on one of the many pristine infirmary beds. Link noted that Samus handled Zelda gently, the unconscious Princess didn't even flinch as the hunter laid the on the bed. Link even saw Zelda's face become distraught when the presence of the hunter was no longer there.

Both hero and hunter were shooed away, so that the staff could work. Link went over to a small waiting area, prepared to wait until he could see Zelda. Looking over he saw Samus was sticking around too, though they didn't sit on one of the chairs provided like Link himself did. Samus leaned against the wall, arms crossed visor glowing brightly watching over where Zelda was getting taken care of. Link watched the hunter a confused look on his face.

Samus behavior was nothing like what he had experienced in the first tournament. Then again they didn't have team battles the first time, but Link couldn't understand how that would cause such a change in the hunter. Maybe Zelda was right and this was how Samus was all along he just couldn't see it before. Or maybe Zelda was prompting a change in the hunter?

Sighing Link stood up approaching the metal clad warrior. It was a good thing he didn't get the triforce of courage for nothing, because even out of combat Samus was an intimidating figure. The scuffs and damage done to the amor only made the hunter more frightening.

Samus didn't acknowledge Link as he approached visor still glowing watching over where Zelda lay. The staff had pulled a curtain around the infirmary bed, but Link had to wonder if Samus' visor was letting her see beyond. He wasn't sure if he should feel grateful or worried that the hunter was watching out for the Princess.

"Hey Aran, we need to talk." Link tried to summon the hunter's attention, he was ignored Samus still giving her focus elsewhere. Link grit his teeth silently reminding himself that he was doing this for Zelda. If the Princess could see good in this cold machine then there had to be something redeeming about them.

"Listen we both know I don't like you, and frankly I don't know or care what you think about me. It would mean alot to Zelda though if we were at least civil with each other." Link began, however it wasn't until he mentioned Zelda that Samus seemed to actually begin to listen. Link suppressed a shiver down his spine when that emotionless visor turned its gaze on him. That cold indifference is what made Samus more frightening than Ganondorf in Link's mind. At least Ganon one could tell he was mortal, showing angry and frustration whenever Link defied him. Samus though there was nothing, the hunter could be strangling the life out someone, but not even the tiniest of emotion would show.

Now that he had the hunter's attention Link continued.

"You listening now? Good, now what is your problem? Zelda thinks you're all right, but last tournament I'm still surprised you didn't smash us all to pieces. So if you're planning on hurting her you better come clean now or else." Samus didn't seem at all phased by Link's threat, even as he gripped the hilt of the master sword. Link didn't think the metal warrior would appear threatened though, after all the hunter had proven last time she was more than capable of dispatching Link.

"Well? Say something!" Link demanded staring at the silent hunter waiting for a response. The Hero made a frustrated sounding growl running his hand through his hair. He was about to turn and give up when Samus' hand moved from its crossed position. Gripping the master sword Link was ready incase the hunter made a move at him.

Instead though Samus pointed at herself before raising her helmet to touch her throat. The hunter took hold of her own throat making it look like they were gasping for air or something. At first Link thought the hunter was threatening him, but then he remembered she pointed at herself before doing the motion. He wished Zelda was here, the Princess was much better at putting things like this together. Was Samus trying to tell him something?

"I don't know what...wait your throat...Can you not speak?" Samus crossed her arms again giving a single nod.

Link was floored, Samus couldn't talk? That was why she never spoke to anyone. He wanted to slap himself in the face for being so stupid. No wonder Zelda saw what nobody else did in the hunter. No one was more quick witted than Zelda, no doubt she was able to piece together anything Samus would try to tell her non-verbally.

A shocking revelation, but Link still was far from trusting the hunter. Mute or not the metal warrior still seemed more like a cold blooded machine. There was no way Link would let their lack of speech sway his opinion of them.

"All right well at least now I know how to get an answer out of you. Are you going to hurt Zelda?" The metal armor tensed Samus' entire posture stiffened, and that visor glared almost...angrily at Link. The Hero blinked did he actually get an emotional reaction out of Samus. Either way it didn't matter because the hunter gave a firm shake of her head. Even though Link didn't trust her, it was still nice to have Samus' kindof word she wasn't planning on harming Zelda.

Samus seemed to think this was the end of their conversation, because her visor began to glow again looking back to where the Princess was. Eyebrow twitching in annoyance Link stepped in front of Samus' gaze. It didn't really grant the effect he wanted since Samus towered over him.

"Metalhead! I know talking to me is the last thing you want to do, trust me I don't want to interact with you either!" Link spat angrily before his face became serious.

"It's upsetting Zelda that we're at odds." Link admitted, the Hero feeling pretty guilty that he was causing a rift between them. The Princess was his friend he should trust her to make the right choices, and if Link was being honest he was happy Zelda was making friends. Even if it was with the cold hearted bounty hunter. Back in Hyrule Link knew how lonely Zelda was, though Link visited as often as he could. Zelda was tied to her kingdom, she couldn't take the time to enjoy a relaxing stroll through Hyrule Fields, or trust others that their smiles were for her and not the ruler of Hyrule.

If there was one thing Link would give Samus is that she did seem like an up front person. The hunter would look one in the eyes before shooting them. Maybe that is why Zelda was getting so attached to the hunter, Link mused. No tricks to earn favor, no deception Samus was either friendly towards someone or not.

"I'm not asking to be your friend." Link spoke like the very idea was disgusting. "Let's just get along for Zelda, it would make her day if we weren't at each other's throats." The hunter nodded, Link letting out an inward sigh of relief. He thought it would have been much harder to come to an understanding with the bounty hunter.

Turning on his heels back to the waiting area Link gave one more glance at the hunter, who in turn looked at him. Nodding to the silent warrior Link planted himself on one of the chair to wait for Zelda to be finished being treated. Samus waited along with him from across the room. Link had to admit while he drummed his fingers against the chair's armrest anxiously, Samus barely moved a muscle the entire time. Sometimes her visor would light up looking to the drawn curtain, but it would dull soon after the hunter patiently waiting.

When the curtain was finally pulled away, and the infirmary staff left Zelda to rest for a bit. Link rushed over to her like an excited puppy, Samus followed behind much more calmly.

Zelda was already awake, the miracle of having the medical knowledge from all sorts of dimensions. Though one could tell the Princess was tired, her bandaged head a testament to the fight she just went through.

"Link? Samus?" At first she seemed surprised to see the Hero, no doubt because of the strain between them recently. She seemed even more surprised to see the bounty hunter right behind Link.

"Told you, you were going to take a few beatings here didn't I?" Link joked grinning earning a smile from the ruler of Hyrule. Zelda's soft gaze turned to the metal warrior, and to Link's surprised the hunter made a series of movements with her hand. Zelda smiled at this seeming to understand the motions.

"I'm feeling fine Samus, just a little tired. You're both here though…" Clearly it was surprising to the Princess to see both hero and hunter in one place, without the tense air that would follow them. Link smiled glad he had chosen to make a uncertain peace with the hunter.

"Don't think we're buddies now, but we're done glaring at each other from across the room." Just like Link thought she would Zelda's face lite up at the sight of the two on friendly terms. Taking a look at the hunter Link saw the subtle nod at him, and he returned it. They were far from friends, but it was a start.

* * *

Later, Link had returned home after getting a much needed laugh from watching Zelda interact with Samus. The Princess had insisted that Samus get some medical attention herself, but the hunter was having none of it. It was nice, Link had never seen Zelda so happy and open with someone. It made the hero glad he dragged her royal butt to the tournament. Even rulers needed a break once and awhile, and Zelda defiantly earned a break from protecting and ruling over Hyrule. Link wisely choose to leave the two, as they were locked in a silent stare down of who would give in first.

Link knew it would be Samus, no one defied the Princess when she was set on something. Even a battle hardened warrior like Samus.

Entering his temporary home Link stiffened, the air inside was thick with a dark aura. Unlike Zelda who could easily sense even the slightest presence of dark magic. Link could only pick up on it when something especially dark was about.

Pulling out the master sword Link took a cautious step forward. The dark air fled upon the blade of evil's bane being drawn. That was good it meant whatever was creating this dark air was gone. Link kept his weapons drawn though just in case.

Eyes spying around Link looked for anything out of place. On the coffee table the hero spotted a dagger pinning a note to the wood. With care he pulled the blade out inspecting it. The weapon was of no real significance, probably a cheap dagger that would be impossible to track to the owner. Link knew who exactly placed the weapon here though.

Turning to the paper face grim Link read the message scrawled onto it. Face becoming determined Link crumpled the note in his hand tossing it aside. He then went to riding the house of the dark air before Zelda would return. No evidence of the dark message would be seen by the time the Princess returned.

* * *

 _ **A.N. I always find it fun to do chapters from other characters point of view, and Link's is always extra fun since he views Samus the complete opposite of how Zelda views her. Not much else to say about this chapter, be prepared for the next one it's the longest chapter I've ever written for a fan fiction and shit is hitting the fan. See you guys**_ ** _next chapter^^_**


	11. A Plan in Motion

_**A.N. Sorry for my long absence, I decided to do a last minute rewrite of this chapter that changed the course of where the story was going.(In other words I was three chapters ahead, and had to rewrite them all sorry.) Don't worry though things are back on track, and I should have things going smoothly until the end of the melee**_ ** _tournament^^. So for now enjoy the chapter._**

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Chapter 11 A Plan in Motion

Samus had to wonder why she agreed to this again, looking around the warp zone's lobby that was decked out with various tables of small foods and decoration. Along with several of the fighters mingling in small groups. The huntress sighed, it only took one look from Zelda to get Samus to agree to come to this get together. Samus blamed it on the happy hopeful gleam in Zelda's eyes when she asked her if she was coming to Peach's get together. The huntress didn't want to cause the Princess to lose that gleam.

The bounty hunter wasn't a people person, she prefered to be alone. Most people didn't enjoy her company anyway, so why bother being in their presence. When Zelda asked if Samus would be coming though, Samus felt she had to agree. For these past weeks Samus has come to enjoy Zelda's company very much.

Samus had almost forgotten what it was like to interact with someone on a regular basis. There were no constants in her life. She would go from place to place, fight all manner of horrid creatures or ruthless criminals, with no family or home to call her own. Zebes was the only place Samus had ever considered home, and it was gone. Destroyed into a million chucks of rock and debris because of her actions.

Nearly every day Zelda would spend time with Samus though. At first it made sense as the Princess would train with her, the two becoming quite efficient in battle. However Zelda seemed content to spend her downtime with Samus as well. Not that the huntress was complaining. Zelda always seemed happy to relax in silence, or talk to the huntress, completely okay with Samus only giving a small nod or shake of her head as an answer. Samus had never encountered someone who wasn't put off by her inability to speak. Combined with her reputation and robotic appearance it was rare to find someone who didn't have fear in their eyes when dealing with Samus.

There was never any fear in Zelda's eyes when she looked at Samus. Perhaps that was why Samus found herself slowly opening up to the Princess. Even in her own dimension people were suspicious of Samus. After all the huntress did have the most powerful piece of technology ever crafted by the Chozo, they were right to be wary.

Zelda trusted Samus, unlike nearly every being in her dimension and subspace. Zelda trusted Samus, so Samus would put her trust in the Princess.

The wary looks Samus got upon entering the warp zone lobby, she ignored. Samus had no desire to mingle with the other fighters, it's not like she could anyway. Surprisingly Samus noted Link was no where to be seen. The green clad hero was usually at the center of any social gathering. His heroic charm made him a natural at speaking to others. Samus pushed the thoughts away. They made be on better terms, but Samus was still far from caring that much about Link.

Before Samus could locate the Princess though, a familiar yellow blur flew by. The next thing Samus knew Pikachu was happily perched on her shoulder.

"Pika! Pika Pi!" The pokemon happily chirped, and Samus smiled under her helmet. Pikachu was no doubt surprised to see Samus here, and by the way he excitedly chattered away in his pokemon language. He was over the moon to have Samus here.

Ignoring the downright flabbergasted looks of nearby fighters who couldn't believe the terrifying bounty hunter had the cute pokemon on her shoulder. Samus went over to one of the tables set up, grabbing a little cheese cube from a platter laid out as a snack. The huntress offered the snack to Pikachu, who happily accepted.

"Chuuu," Samus scratched the pokemon's head earning a purr like sound in response.

"With all the treats you give him I'm surprise Pikachu is still as small as he is." A teasing voice noted, and Samus turned to see the Princess of Hyrule smiling at her. Completely healed from their last fight Zelda looked every bit of the royal princess she was. Brown hair neatly tied in a braid flowing down her back, pristine dress without even the slightest wrinkle.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried out at the assumption he was gaining weight. Zelda grinned reaching out to scratch the pokemon under the chin. She was quickly forgiven after a moment of giving the pokemon attention.

It was then Samus noticed Zelda was not alone, a young man with fiery red hair, and a sword at his hip stood with her. Roy, Samus believed his name was. He was one of the newcomers to the tournament along with Zelda. The Princess saw Samus looking at the swordsman curiously.

"Right, you two haven't meet yet have you?" Zelda gave Pikachu one last pat on the head before introducing the two.

"Samus, this is Roy he's from the same dimension as Marth correct?" The Princess looked to Roy for confirmation, and the man nodded grinning.

"Right you are Princess, nice to meet the champion from the last tournament. I've heard a lot about you, and I look forward to testing myself against you." There wasn't any uncertainty in Roy's eyes Samus noted. He seemed genuinely enthusiastic about facing her in the tournament. Glancing at Zelda Samus smiled lightly under her helmet. The only way Roy would hear about Samus and not fear or believe her a villainous machine was if Zelda told him about her. Though Samus didn't care about what people thought, she was grateful Zelda combating rumors about her.

Roy held out his hand and Samus took it in a firm shake.

"I'm glad you and Link worked out whatever problem you two had. You have no idea how long he could rant about you. It was hilarious, but there's only so long Marth and I could watch him bitterly glare at you before it got annoying." Roy laughed, while Samus smirked under her helmet. Finding the thought of Link so frustrated about her that he would rant slightly amusing.

"It's a relief to everyone," Zelda commented dryly not amused by the green hero at all.

"I'm sure it is to you Princess." Roy grinned clearly getting a kick out of Zelda's irritation.

"Anyway Samus, tell me where do you hail from? A warrior of your skill must have some interesting tales to tell." Samus was going to shake her head and deny answering the question, but Zelda gave Samus a questioning look. The huntress nodded giving Zelda permission to speak for her.

"Roy, Samus is actually mute unless you know sign language…" Zelda trailed off letting Roy realize Samus wouldn't be able to answer him. The fiery haired hero blinked before throwing his head back in a laugh.

"Ha, no wonder you have a reputation for being silent." Roy spoke in good humor not intending any insult. It was then Roy and Zelda began talking about something Samus missed, as the hunter noticed another yellow blur rushing towards her. Pichu the younger first evolution of Pikachu came rushing over. The pokemon came right to Samus pawing at her hand trying to gain her attention. It wasn't the playful grab for Samus' attention that the pokemon normally tried with the hunter. Pichu seemed downright panicked.

Pikachu hopped off Samus' shoulder to the other pokemon. The younger of the two seemed to frantically communicating with the other. Pikachu's body became tense, and the pokemon turned to Samus.

"Pika! Pika pika!"Pikachu jumped up to grab Samus' hand jerking the huntress down so he could hold it. Tugging furiously Pikachu pointed towards the door with his free paw.

"Pika!" His frantic movements caught the attention of Zelda and Roy. The Princess appeared concern, looking to Samus for an explanation on Pikachu's behavior.

Samus didn't take the time to form any response. Something was clearly wrong, nodding Samus straightened up ready to follow the pokemon. Both pokemon sprinted out the door Samus following close behind just barely hearing Zelda tell Roy they'll talk later before following them.

"Samus!" Zelda called out to the huntress, though struggling Zelda managed to catch up to the running huntress.

"What's going on?" Clearly Zelda could tell Pikachu wouldn't demand Samus follow him without reason. Just like Samus she understood that something must be amiss.

The streets were empty, it was late enough in the day that things were winding down in the city. With the sun setting off in the distance things would seem peaceful, but Samus only felt a sense of dread. It was odd Samus sensed something familiar, but she couldn't place where she got this dark feeling before.

Pikachu and Pichu bolted down the streets at breakneck speed, racing to get to their destination. People became even more sparse as they reached the far end of the city. It seemed like most cities Subspace had a darker area. Subconsciously Samus slowed down a bit to stay closer to Zelda just in case.

"Come on is that all you got!" Samus recognized that voice, it was Link's. The pokemon lead the teammates to what looked like an abandon warehouse. The sound of laser weaponry resonated from the building. Samus' face tightened, always fighting against such weapons, Samus has come to recognize the sound certain weapons made. It sounded like standard space pirate plasma rifle fire.

At the sound of Link's voice Zelda's eyes narrowed taking on a determined look, but Samus could still see the hint of worry and fear cross her face.

Before entering the warehouse Samus turned to the pokemon, giving a silent order for them to guard the entrance. The pokemon nodded electricity sparking in the crisp night air. The hunter looked to Zelda and the Princess nodded, fire erupting in the palm of her hand. It would be foolish to rush in blindly when Link was possibly in danger, and both hunter and Princess knew this.

Double doors to the warehouse creaked opened, as the hunter slowly entered. Zelda behind her sharp hylian ears listening for anything amiss. The warehouse itself was nothing of significance. Crates stacked on top of crates filled the relatively open building.

A monstrous roar resonated through the building, clashing metal and more weapon fire.

"Come on maggots! First one to bring me his head gets extra rations for a month!" Samus eyes narrowed, foregoing any stealth Samus looked up seeing whatever was going on was happening on the other side of a large stack of crates. Glancing at Zelda the hunter pointed up quickly before wall jumping off the wall to get on top of the crates, knowing Zelda could use her magic to join her.

The Princess was soon beside her gasping at the sight before her. Space Pirates, though to the Princess they probably just looked like reptilian monsters. Samus however knew these scum all too well. They were they murders who killed her parents, then annihilated her adopted family taking their home as their own.

And now they were trying to killed Link. The hero stood strong surrounded on all sides by five pirate troopers, and two commandos. While one elite pirate commander stood watching the fight from a crate stacked high in the air. The blonde was panting Samus could see blood soaking through his green tunic. He had held his own, Samus spotting two dead pirates laying dead on the floor.

Though she may have only observed the situation in the span of seconds, the hunter acted as if she had every movement planned out from the start. Springing down from her high point Samus fired a missile at the elite commando before landing on the back of one of the troopers. One could hear his spine crack as Samus landed on him full force. There was brief pause as everyone froze, the pirate troopers looking at their greatest enemy in horror.

The commandos were the first to act, their single goal in life to hunt the hunter. They fired their plasma guns at the hunter, however none of them noticed the lithe hylian slip in behind Samus. Zelda's magic reflected their weapons the pirates having to jump out of the way to avoid their own plasma fire.

Link used the chaos to impale one of the distracted troopers with the master sword. This brought the others troopers attention back to the hero, but a missile to the skull of one of them reminded the pirates of the true threat.

"Hunter!" Recovered from her opening missile blast the elite jumped into the fray. His wrist mounted saber slashing at the huntress. Samus easily dodged kicking the creature in the stomach. It only irritated the pirate, but Samus left no room to retaliate firing a charged shot at the elite pirate.

He snarled, clutching his now wounded shoulder where Samus' charge shot had hit him.

"Enough!" The pirates all stopped their attacking, the two remaining troopers slowly inching behind their commander. While the commandos snarled at Zelda who held magic fire threateningly in her hands, one of her arms was bleeding though one of the sabers managing to nick her. The commandos heeded their commander's order, slinking behind the elite. The elite pointed a clawed finger at Samus.

"You weren't supposed to be here hunter. Some credit isn't worth losing a another platoon to you. We're leaving." The elite was about to drop a smoke bomb to give them cover to retreat, but he never got the chance. Samus was in front of him in a flash arm cannon painfully shoved under his jaw. The other pirates raised their weapons to fire, but the elite raised a hand stopping them.

"What do you want hunter, because of you we're forced to take these pathetic mercenary jobs. Do you intend to slaughter us to the last?" The arm cannon began charging its energy burning the leathery skin of the pirate's throat. The pirate's eyes narrowed something akin to a smirk forming on his lips.

"Information for our lives then. We weren't paid for silence, so we walk and I'll tell you who hired us." Samus kept her arm cannon charged and burning into the pirate's throat as she nodded.

"Didn't give a name, but we were supposed to kill him, and I believe her." The elite pointed at the hylians. Link was using his sword as a crutch, as Zelda used her magic to patch him up as best she could.

"It was supposed to be simple, but of course you had to be here. So are we free?" Samus didn't let her arm cannon leave the pirate's throat. The elite smirked, looking almost pleased.

"Hmph, we would have done the same. Burn in hell hunter," the elite snarled. Just as the other pirates opened fired, Samus released her cannon on the elite. He fell in a heap the energy burning through his skull. Samus jumped avoiding the pirates firing upon her. She landed next to one of the troopers grabbing him, Samus kneed him in the stomach. As he hunched over in pain Samus grabbed him throwing him into the other trooper. Their lives ended together by the explosion of a super missile.

The last two commandos stood their ground. One threw a plasma grenade, while the other fired upon the hunter rapidly trying to keep the hunter at a distance. Going down into her morph ball form, Samus easily dodged everything they threw at her. Racing over to the two Samus changed back as she met the pirates, her fist connecting with the one pirate's face. The other got several energy shots before a missile ended him.

Helmet cracked the pirate coughed blood growling at Samus. He raised his weapon to shoot at her, but it was swatted away like a toy by Samus. Kicking the pirate to the ground Samus slammed her boot onto the pirate's neck.

"Curse you hunter!" The pirate breathed, with a snap Samus crushed his neck with her boot.

Samus stood still for a moment then she removed her boot from the pirate's neck. She didn't noticed the stunned looks of the hylians, as she stood there. All that was going through Samus' mind was Ganondorf had aligned himself with the pirates. Before Samus hadn't even considered him a major threat, now he was on the top of Samus' priority list. A list no one ever stayed alive on for long.

* * *

Zelda couldn't stop her hands from trembling. The Princess despised violence, she had seen enough of it in the alternate timeline to last for two lifetimes. More importantly though her closest friend nearly got himself killed.

"How could you be so stupid!" Link flinched at Zelda's voice, it was rare for the royal to ever raise her voice. The Princess could face shouting nobles with a serene smile, and answer them calmly. This time though Zelda was couldn't believe the foolishness of Link's actions.

"I didn't think…"

"Clearly!" Guilt was clear on Link's face, and Zelda felt a tinge of her own guilt for causing it. But by the goddesses did Link scare Zelda today. How could he get a message from Ganondorf to meet him at an abandon warehouse, and not tell her? Obviously it would be a trap, no doubt Ganondorf accounted for Link's blind courage to force him to rush in sword ready.

Even worse Link had destroyed the note Ganon had left him, so now there was nothing linking the villain to the attack. While Link's word did carry a lot of weight being a hero known across dimensions. It wasn't enough for Master Hand to punish Ganon for attack done by creatures not connected to the dark lord at all.

Link snuck deeper into the infirmary bed, frowning. Zelda tried to keep a stern face, but sighed. Though foolish Link did what he thought would protect them from Ganon. Resting her hands on the bed Zelda slumped a little in her chair seated next to Link's bed.

"Sorry I yelled," Link shook his head a small grin lighting up his face.

"Only you would apologize for yelling at me when I deserve it. I had it coming, it's fine." Taking one of Zelda's still shaking hands Link gave her an encouraging smile. Zelda returned it, happy her friend was fine.

Link had taken quite a beating from the monsters Zelda would later hear someone call space pirates. After Samus had annihilated the last of them the commotion attracted the attention of Subspace's residents. Soon Link had been whisked away to get medical attention while Zelda lost track of the silent hunter as she followed to help her injured friend.

Zelda didn't want to admit it, but she now saw Link's perspective on Samus. The hunter was downright terrifying tonight. She killed every single one of those creatures almost single handly.

The Princess didn't know how to feel about the whole thing. Logically Zelda knew those creatures were evil, and they deserved the end Samus gave them. However she couldn't suppress a shiver recalling the efficient brutal way Samus dispatched the pirates.

The creatures acted like they knew Samus, and by the way they cursed the hunter it was clear they were enemies. It was a worrying thought that Samus dealt with those creatures regularly.

Link saw the dark expression on Zelda face, and decided it was time to break the Princess from whatever dark thoughts were bothering her.

"You know where Aran went off to? I'm surprised you didn't drag her to the infirmary too." Zelda's lips upturned in a small smile, despite Samus taking little if any damage in the fight earlier. Zelda probably would have drag her to receive medical attention, or at the very least check the hunter herself.

"I don't know, I was just focusing on getting you some help." Link took note of Zelda conflicted expression thinking of the hunter. The blonde raised an eyebrow surprised Zelda wasn't running off to find said hunter and check on her.

"What's wrong? Zelda rubbed the back of her hand unconsciously frowning.

"Nothing, I supose I'm just finally seeing your side." A small part of Zelda was frightened at the brutal display. Samus didn't fight like that in matches, it was clear to Zelda now that the hunter held back against others fighters. It was no wonder the huntress was such a strong fighter. In her world it must be kill or be killed, and unlike Hyrule there were no fairies to bring you back from the brink of death.

"Yah, well my side was stupid and wrong." Link smirkd at the surprised look he got from the Princess.

"Mealhead isn't too bad, she saved my ass back there. Sure she smashed a few heads, but did you see those guys? They were as bad as Ganon. I know you would have wanted a peaceful solution, but I'm pretty sure those monsters would have ripped me in half if Samus hadn't ended them." Link knew how much Zelda hated pointless violence, yet he did sound sincere when saying he thought Samus wasn't that bad. Zelda smiled, leave it to Link to stop her from overthinking things. There was a threat, Samus protected them the way she thought best. Simple as that.

Rising from her seat Zelda grinned at the hero.

"I should go find her, I seem to attract the heroic types that ignore when they're injured." The blonde laughed giving Zelda an innocent look.

"It's your own fault us heroic types need someone to tell us when we're being stupid." Zelda shook her head in exasperation leaving the hero to rest.

* * *

Zelda's boots clicked against the smooth sidewalk she strode down. There was a frown drawn across her features. The Princess had been looking for the hunter, but there was no sign of her anywhere. Having checked both her ship and the hidden grove in the park Samus was nowhere to be seen. It would forever surprise Zelda how a six foot tall metal clad warrior could go missing so easily.

Despite the events of the night, things seemed peaceful. It was late, and the moon was high in the sky. Yet something felt amiss to Zelda, a familiar dark tingle running down her spine. The Princess had to wonder if Ganon was up to something else tonight.

Her answer came in form of an explosion rocking the entire street. Zelda stumbled, regaining her footing before snapping her head in the direction the explosion came from.

Smoke billowed from the next street over small embers flying into the air as well. Wasting no time Zelda hurried to see what was going on, despite her body protesting exhausted from the events of today.

The Princess rushed to the next street, but skidded to stop upon seeing the destruction before her. What looked like an apartment building was on fire, a large gaping hole blow into its front.

On the other side of the street struggling to get untangled from the twisted metal of a car was Ganondorf. The lord of darkness spotted her standing not far from him. Sharp features narrowed dark power glowed in his hand, as he aimed it at her a missile flew out of the burning building nailing the gerudo in the chest.

Samus emerged from the building barely a scuff to speak of on her armor. Ganon ripped himself from the car, whipping around he grabbed the hunk of metal throwing it at the hunter. The huntress jumped over the car flying at her, the poor motor vehicle slamming into the already falling apart building.

Ganon smirked his head craning to look at Zelda, the Princess froze. Even as a ball of dark energy came flying at her, every memory and fear from Ganon's seven year rule of Hyrule rushing back to her. Luckily the metal clad hunter sprung forward grabbing Zelda pushing her out of the way.

The black energy exploded where the Princess once stood. Zelda blinked her mind coming back to her. She was on the ground Samus having tackled her out of the way of Ganon's attack. The hunter was knelt down beside her, green visor looking at her to confirm her safety before gazing back at Ganon.

The villain smirked before laughing, pulling something out of a pouch tied to his belt.

"Perfect! Two birds with one stone! I'll deal with you soon enjoy the trip!" With that Ganon threw something at the teammates. It looked like a grenade of some kind, landing right beside them. The circular ball snapped opened into a pill shape, energy resonating from it.

With no time to get out of the way, Samus protectively shielded Zelda with her own body. The Princess herself calling upon Nayru's power to shield them both. When the device's energy exploded Zelda vision immediately went black, and she felt like she was being blow away then pulled back. Wrapping her arms around Samus' waist for fear she would lose the hunter. Zelda felt the dizzying sense of floating, but it didn't last long as the next thing the Princess knew the teammates were literally in the air falling.

"Samus!" The hunter seemed bewildered by what was going to, but acting quickly righting herself in the air. Holding Zelda bridal style in her arms Samus landed on her feet. Sand splashing out around the hunter as she landed.

The hunter let Zelda down, and the Princess' boots sunk into the hot sand. Looking around Zelda's mouth hung opened. They were no longer in Subspace the bustling city was replaced by an empty desert. It was no longer night, as the harsh sun was shining proudly in the sky. Looking around Zelda spotted a wooden post jutting out of the sand. Hanging on top of the post was a flag fluttering in the breeze. A red flag with the mark of the Gerudo emblazoned on it.

It couldn't be possible, but here they were. They were in the middle of the Gerudo Desert back in Hyrule.

* * *

Back in Subspace Ganon smirked triumphantly at the empty ground where the hunter and Princess once were. His original plan was to use the device some unknown supporter had sent to him to be rid of the hunter. The foolish Princess decided to make his work ten times easier though by making an appearance. Now they were both lost in the wasteland of the Gerudo Desert. Ganon could easily deal with them later after he has killed Link.

Weakened as he was by the space pirates Ganon had hired, he would easily fall. Once the Triforce of Courage was in his hands Ganon could deal with any hero Subspace had to offer. Aran had been the only true threat to him, with her out of the way. The Triforce would be his, and Hyrule and Subspace would bow to his might.

* * *

 _ **A.N. You guys thought you were going to get your epic fight between Ganon and Samus weren't youXD. Sorry just a little longer the melee arc of the story is only a few more chapters long so its coming.**_

 _ **On a different note it just came to me writing these few chapters that I really point out how strong Samus is compared to the other fighters. While the other fighters are tough, it's my belief that out of the melee roster. When it comes down to it Ganon and Samus are the strongest fighters. I mean Ganon is a demon lord of darkness and Samus destroys entire planets of monsters alone for a living. Just some of my thought process that I'm sharing because why notXD.**_

 _ **Final note for you guys an anonymous reviewer called April asked about how the fighters aren't getting vaporized by Samus or worse since I have them keeping injuries from their battles. To answer their power is suppressed while fighting in the tournament, some unknown tech Master Hand has keeps anyone from getting killed. It will be mentioned further in the next chapter I believe since a lot of fighting will be happening outside of the official tournament now. Hope that clears things up for you^^.**_

 _ **With that I will see you guys next chapter, reviews are loved as always see ya'!**_


	12. Game Start

_**A.N. Hello! It's been a while hasn't it. I'll be honest with you guys Fallout 4 came out and everything in my life was ignored for awhile. Then finals happened, and most of you know how that goes, but enough excuses for why I haven't updated! I'm back in action and ready to get things done with this story. If any of you readers celebrate Christmas think of this as your present from me!(If don't celebrate Christmas then its just a random giftXD) With that enjoy the chapter everybody the story shall go on!**_

* * *

Chapter 12 Game Start

Link was running for the first time in his life. As soon as Ganon had walked into the infirmary Link knew what the dark lord was there for. Without his sword and with his injuries. There was no way he would stand a chance against the Gerudo King right now.

"What's the matter boy! Where's your courage now!" The Gerudo laughed sending a blast of dark magic at him. Link dodged out of the way continuing to dash down the street despite his protesting body. Link cursed he remembered Zelda taking his sword and shield, but he didn't know what the royal did with them. If she took them back to their house then that was too far to run he'd never make it.

Another blast of magic, and Link had to roll to the side to get out of the way. Picking himself up quickly Link continued to run wincing as his side burned a stab wound from one of the pirate throbbing painfully. He had to find someone, Ganon was one of the most powerful contestants here. Without Master Hand to lessen the damage, or the power of the seven sages to weaken him Ganon was a force to be reckoned with. Probably one of the most powerful fighters here.

Samus, Link had to find Samus he thought quickening his pace despite the pain. Link had seen it on Ganon's face whenever he looked at the hunter. Ganon knew Samus could take him. Anyone else would risk serious injury or worse taking him on. Ganondorf was his enemy he wouldn't ask someone to fight him, unless he knew they could handle themself against the Gerudo King's power.

Even if Link could get to the master sword, Link knew he was weak right now. Being courageous did not mean being stupid, Link wouldn't fight a battle he knew he would lose. The only reason he had defeated Ganon before was thanks to the power of the seven sages. There were no sages here to help him this time though.

Clenching his teeth Link had no idea where the hunter could be. Perhaps Zelda would know, but he had no idea where she was either.

Link didn't get the chance to think about it either, out of nowhere a sword came swiping right in front of his path. Falling on his back and sliding under it Link dodged, quickly scrambling back onto his feet. The owner of the sword snarled showing its razor sharp teeth. It was a lizlfos, one of Ganon's many minions how it got in Subspace Link didn't know. The lizardman hissed showing its forked tongue, yellow eyes glaring at Link.

With a blast of magic hurling towards him from one side, and the lizlfos' blade coming from the other. Link prepared himself to be hit by something, but the blow never came. The next thing the hero knew he was high in the sky, riding on a brightly glowing star.

"You okay Link?" Riding on the star with him was the fiery haired swordsman Roy. Next to him controlling the star they road was the pink Hero of Dreamland Kirby.

Looking down at the city below, Link's eyes widened. Fires dotted the city and Link could hear screams of panic from innocent citizens being chased by Ganon's minions. How in the world did Ganon get so many of his servants into Subspace without suspicions being raised.

"I'm fine, but what is going on?" Roy's face was grim holding the hilt of his sword tightly.

"No clue I was sleeping when there was this huge explosion didn't you hear it?" The swordsman did look like he had just rolled out of bed and threw on his armor. Before Link could answer though Kirby let out a startled gasp, both heroes looked ahead to see what the pink hero was looking at. Link's jaw dropped at the center of the city a huge ball of dark energy, pulsing with unknown power. The buildings around it were decimated ready to collapse, as the mass of energy expanded and contracted.

"I didn't hear it, but I think that's what exploded…" The hero of Hyrule could see monsters swarming around the mass. That must be where Ganon's minions were coming from, a portal of some kind. How Ganon created it Link didn't know, but it didn't matter how now. What mattered was figuring out how to close it.

"That can't be good, what in the world is going on here?" Roy yelled looking at the portal seeing the monsters coming from its depths.

"Ganondorf, he's behind this! How he made that I don't care, we have to find Zelda! We can't let Ganon get his hands on her!" Crawling forward Link tapped Kirby to get his attention.

"Kirby! Bring us to my house! I have to get my stuff!" The hero of Dreamland nodded adopting a determined look as he steered the star. Roy however gave Link an uncertain look.

"You're not really in fighting shape Link. Maybe we should drop you off somewhere safer." Just as Roy finished his sentence a large explosion shook the air, down below what looked like a garage was being swarmed by monsters.

"I don't think there is any safe place right now! Besides we have to find Zelda!" Link had to cover his mouth after speaking. Kirby having to fly through a billow of smoke rising from the now burning park.

"No offense Link, but Zelda probably has Samus with her, she'll be fine. I think our first priority should be the monsters pouring out from that portal." Eyebrows narrowing Link gave Roy a pointed look.

"No, that's why we have to find her. I can't take Ganon on. Not like this, Samus can though. She's our only chance of taking Ganon out without someone ending up in a grave." The fiery haired hero didn't get a chance to disagree as Kirby jerked the star to avoid a blast of blue fire. The swordsmen clutched the star trying desperately not to fall. When the star leveled out Link's eyes narrowed as two poes appeared in the air. Bright yellow eyes stared at them. The ghost enemies laughed conjuring more fire in their hands.

Link held tightly to the star his only hope was that Zelda met up with Samus before all this broke out. If Ganon had found her first Link pushed the thoughts away, he had to find his friend quickly before the worst could happen.

* * *

Zelda had never liked the desert, both due to her time as Sheik and the environment. The desert was a land of death, only the strong survived. The weak would perish their bones consumed by the ever moving sands.

The Princess could already feel sweat building up along her hairline, reminding her of the stark change in temperature. This was bad, extremely bad, how Ganon sent them here the Princess didn't know. What was important now was that they were alone in the middle of the desert, and Ganon was no doubt up to no good in Subspace.

Snapping from her shock Zelda looked to her metal companion. The hunter as always was the definition of calm and control. Seeing Samus calm settled the Princess' own panic she had felt rising upon realizing where they were. The hunter was not moving though she appeared to be in deep thought.

Before Zelda could say anything the hunter's arm cannon shifted. The weapon changed the lights running along it changing from green to a cool white, a cold mist came from the barrel of the weapon. Without warning Samus charged the weapon then fired it at the ground a few feets from them.

Jumping back as the weapon fired Zelda was shocked to see it wasn't the normal energy Samus usually used. Where once just sand was now a large chunk of ice jutted from the ground. Cool air rose from the ice as the hot desert sun glared down at it.

When Zelda looked at the hunter for an explanation as to why she created a chuck of ice. Samus allowed her weapon to dematerialized letting her sign an answer.

" _For water,"_ Samus simply answered, Zelda wondered if she should be surprised how quickly Samus adapted to the situation. It was like the hunter wasn't even phased in the least by being sent to a whole different world.

The hunter approached the ice and broke a peice off, crushing it in her hand to create small bite sized pieces. She gave them to Zelda, who took them without a word. She didn't want to admit it but she had already began feeling thirsty from just standing in the hot desert, and the cool ice felt good melting in her mouth.

"Do you have any idea how Ganon sent us here?" The device Ganon threw at them was no magic, and it definitely was too advance to be Hyrulian made. Samus was of a technology driven world, so there was a better chance she understood how they got here.

The hunter shook her head, looking around visor glowing before signing to Zelda.

" _Do you know where we are?"_

"Gerudo Desert, we're actually in Hyrule. The world Link and I are from." The metal clad warrior nodded in understanding, and Zelda frowned. If only she had the ocarina of time, at the very least she could use it to transport them out of the desert. The desert was Ganon's domain even when he wasn't in power. Monsters lurked here in droves, and the Gerudos were hardly friendly towards hylians. Especially hylians that had connections to the royal family.

" _Do you know a way out of the desert?"_ Samus asked, scanning around the horizon that only lead to more open desert. Zelda thought for a moment if they went east that would eventually bring them to Hyrule Field. Even if they got out of the desert though, how were they going to get back to Subspace. Ganon had clearly planned this all out, he was probably going after Link right now in Subspace. The Princess rubbed the back of her hand, a nervous habit the royal didn't even notice she was doing.

She did notice when Samus took said hand holding it reassuringly. Samus looked at Zelda waiting patiently for the royal to gather her thoughts. Sighing Zelda nodded, the unspoken message of they'll be fine being received.

"East will take us out of the desert. How we'll get back to Subspace I have no idea."

" _One step at a time."_ The hunter signed, letting go of the Princess' hand. Their visor glowed for a moment before the hunter pointed off into the distance.

" _That's east."_ Zelda looked in the direction Samus pointed, but the Princess' ears twitched hearing something coming from a different direction. Zelda gazed off into the distance narrowing her eyes to try to see better. Turning to the hunter Zelda spoke.

"Samus can your visor see something over there, I can hear an animal of some kind coming from there." Hylian ears were quite sensitive, the legend says it was to hear the words of the goddesses better. While Zelda's never heard the goddesses speak she could tell when she was hearing an animal roaring.

Samus' visor glowed for a moment before the hunter responded.

" _Not sure, too far to tell."_ Samus reported, tilting her head curiously. Gazing off into the distance Zelda's eyes squinted to see a cloud of sand being kicked up by something moving. It was getting closer quickly, and the Princess got the feeling she didn't want to be around when it got near.

"Let's get out of here Samus I don't like the look of that…" While Zelda was almost certain together they could handle most monsters the desert had to offer, she didn't want to put that theory to the test. The hunter nodded in agreement, she looked like she was about to sign something. When suddenly Samus jerked moving her body in front of Zelda, the Princess heard whoosh of air. Then the next thing Zelda saw was an arrow stuck in the hunter's armor.

"Samus!" Alarmed Zelda went to check the damage, but Samus moved again using her larger frame to shield Zelda as three more arrows fell from the sky. Two missed landing in the sand, and the other bounced off Samus armor with a metallic ping.

Samus was protectively holding Zelda close so that any arrow that fell would not hurt the Princess. The hunter's one arm let go off Zelda changing back into her arm cannon. Fully letting go of Zelda, Samus whipped around firing a missile at the quickly approaching dust cloud. Zelda flinched hearing a pain filled roar as the hunter hit something.

Bulbins Zelda realized, goblin like creatures that followed Ganon. Riding in on boar like creatures call bulbo, the monsters easily crossed the desert racing after the teammates. At least two were galloping towards them two bulbins on each bulbo.

The hunter glanced at Zelda an unspoken plan formulating between the two. When the monsters were no less than a few yards away the two acted. A few more arrows flew towards them, but either they were avoided or Samus merely shrugged off the damage. The weak arrows unable to pierce her armor. Being the bigger target the bulbin's ignored the Princess their arrows trained on the hunter.

Giving them cover Zelda used Farore's wind to kick up a cloud of sand that the bulbins rode straight into. The Princess was no more and Sheik disappeared into the shadows. The sheikah heard the monsters shriek in anger from losing sight of their prey. They didn't lose it for long though as Samus made herself known jumping right in front of the one bulbos. The boar creature roared, but was silenced as Samus grabbed its one tusk and fired a missile in the creature's face.

The two bulbins that rode the bulbo jumped from the creature as it breathed its last breath. One bearing a sword rushed at Samus, but the hunter easily side stepped it wrapping an arm around its neck. The creature's life ended with a snap. The other holding a bow looked uncertainly at the hunter. Emotionless visor staring the creature down, daring it to attack her.

Before it could make a move though, its brethren feeling confidant since they still had their mounts charged the hunter. The second duo of bulbins fell from their mount. A chain having wrapped around them from behind yanking them off. Sheik smirked under the cloth covering her face, while sometimes strong bulbins were very foolish foes.

Quickly before they could untangle themselves from the chain. Sheik yanked on the chain again the bulbins tumbled over into the sand with a yelp. It was Samus who ended their lives though, their thin green skin did not last against the hunter's weapon fire.

With the threat gone Sheik faded away back to Zelda. When the Princess blinked she was back to her normal self. Zelda shook her head, a useful power however the Princess did not like changing into the sheikah. Sheik was almost a separate person from Zelda herself. While Sheik shared the same goals as Zelda, their morals and personalities were vastly different. Sheik was created out of desperation to survive Ganon's reign over Hyrule. As such Zelda's outlook became much bleaker when transformed. Sheik would be much more inclined to slit someone's throat rather than make peace with them, something Zelda would be mortified if she did.

In the end Zelda and Sheik were different parts of the same person. Only Sheik is what remains of what Zelda would have become had Ganon remained in control of Hyrule.

The Princess was pulled from her thoughts by an angry roar from the bulbo that remained alive. Coughing at little as the sand settled, Zelda turned to the beast. To her surprised Samus wasn't aiming her weapon at it in preparation to attack. The hunter's arm cannon was away both her hands held up in a passive manner. It looked like she was trying to get the creature to calm down.

The bulbo stomped its front hooves on the ground growling at the hunter, shaking its head thrashing its tusks about. Zelda kept her distance the boar like monster was bigger than a horse, and could easily impale the royal with one of its menacing tusks.

Samus seemed unconcerned about the threatening stance the bulbo was making. She took a step closer to it, and the bulbo reared up on its hind legs. When it brought its legs back down Samus didn't even flinched. She took another step forward and held out her hand to touch the creature.

Large nostrils took a heavy sniff of the hand. Then to Zelda great surprise the bulbo allowed the hunter to pet its snout. After a moment the supposedly fearsome mount of the bulbins let out a low humming noise before collapsing in the sand. Samus proceed to pet the creature's head while the bulbo made a noise of contentment.

A delicate eyebrow rose watching the exchange. Somehow Zelda felt she shouldn't be surprised. If Pikachu was any indication Samus had a knack for getting the strangest of creatures to like her. As silly as it was to watch Samus befriend the bulbo, they had more pressing issues.

"We should probably get moving Samus, unless you plan on befriending every bulbo that comes chasing after us?" Zelda smiled lightly as Samus gave the creature one last pat before turning to Zelda.

" _I figured we could use him to get out of the desert."_ So there was a logical reason behind her not killing the beast, though Zelda suspected even if they didn't have a use for the bulbo. Samus wouldn't kill it now that its riders were dead. Though quite monstrous looking the boar like creature was only as bad as its rider.

"You want to ride that?" Zelda flinched as the bulbo rose to its feet menacing red eyes not inspiring confidence in the royal. She had ridden horses before, but Zelda couldn't help but be uncertain about even getting near such a creature.

" _I could run faster than it, but I would need to carry you then."_ Zelda didn't even question how Samus could run faster than the boar, but a blush did rise to her cheeks at the thought of the hunter carrying her. It could easily be the desert heat though.

The Princess only pondered for a moment before the hunter decided for her. Seeing the uncertain look Zelda adopted upon looking at the bulbo. The hunter easily swept Zelda off her feet and into her arms bridal style.

"Samus! This is completely unnecessary…" The royal's words were cut off when the hunter broke into a run that she assumed was leading them east. Within moments of running at an average pace the jet like attachments on Samus' back glowed before firing off like small jet engines. This caused Samus' speed to increase so much that Zelda had to tuck her face in the crock of Samus neck and shoulder to shield her face from the wind.

Samus definitely did not lie when she said she could run faster than the bulbo. The hunter was rocketing through the desert faster than anything in Hyrule.

Zelda couldn't tell how far they traveled, because when Samus skidded to a stop there was still miles of desert around them.

Blinking Zelda raised her head, Samus put her down in order to sign something to the Princess. The hunter's visor was glowing looking around at something Zelda couldn't see.

"What is it Samus? More monsters?" That would be strange as normally the farther one got out of the desert the less monsters one would see. While Samus processed whatever she was looking at, Zelda glanced behind them looking at the miles of desert they managed to cross.

Far off into the distance Zelda could spot the bulbo they had left behind rushing after them. Zelda shook her head how Samus got the creature to like her so much would remain a mystery. Turning her gaze back to Samus the hunter had quickly looked to Zelda and began signing.

" _There's something in the sand, something alive."_ The Princess nodded understanding Samus stopped in order to make sure Zelda wasn't unaware of the potential threat underneath the sand. The hunter moved to pick the royal back up again so they continue on their way, but just as Samus touched Zelda the hunter was ripped away from the royal.

A floormaster had burst out of the sand grabbing Samus from behind and pulling her to the ground. Two more came from below grabbing the hunter's arms keeping her pinned. The hunter thrashed trying to break free. Fire erupted in Zelda's hands before she could throw it, a rough hand wrapped its cold fingers around the royal's waist.

Zelda hit the ground quickly sinking down beneath sand as the floormaster dragged under. Another hand grabbed her hastening the process, Zelda struggled tried to used her magic to break free. It was in vain though soon the harsh desert sun disappeared from view as the disembodied hand enemies dragged her under the sand. The last thing Zelda saw as sand invaded her visor was Samus' bright visor as the hunter attempted to grab her before she disappeared under the sand.

She couldn't breath, it was like she was drowning except by sand instead of water. Zelda's struggling ceased as she lost consciousness.

* * *

It was slow but the world slowly came back to the Princess. The first thing she realized was that she was moving, or being dragged across the ground by her right arm. Zelda had to bite her tongue to stop herself from crying out in in pain. A blinding pain shot through her shoulder, whatever was dragging her must have dislocated the appendage at some point.

Slowly Zelda opened her eyes blinking the blurriness away. Coughing as she still felt sand rattling in her chest, the royal tried to tough out the pain though. Looking around she was in some sort of stone passage, bland sandstone walls extended on in both directions. Craning her head Zelda saw a large leathery skinned hand engulfing her arm as it dragged her.

A moblin, a giant pig like creature that carried a large spear in one hand dragged Zelda down the hall with its free hand. It grunted and snorted its ears flicking lazily as it walked. The monster hadn't noticed Zelda had awakened, continuing its pace down the hall.

If she had any hope of getting away from this monster, Zelda had to do something while the creature still believed she was unconscious. Quickly Zelda closed her eyes and went limp as the moblin took a glance at its burden.

While she had her eyes closed Zelda heard something approaching. A hiss like noise and a sharp clicking lend Zelda to believe it was a lizlfos. The moblin let out low growl dropping Zelda to the ground. Once again Zelda bite her tongue to stop from crying out in pain.

Opening her eyes it turned out she was right, and a lizlfos was now making a series of sharp hissing noises at the moblin. The moblin growled slamming its fist against the wall. Zelda slowly shifted, getting to her knees neither monster noticed her moving.

Getting to her feet Zelda carefully backed away from the monsters. Her right arm hung limp pain shooting through her shoulder. Zelda winced but continued to sneak away. The moblin and the lizlfos seemed to be arguing about something. The lizlfos hissed waving its short sword threateningly. The moblin was having none of it, and backhanded the offending creature, the lizard creature shrieking in respond.

Zelda got further and further away before she turned a corner and lost sight of the creatures. Clutching her limp arm the Princess quickly crept through the dark stone halls, putting as much distance as she could from the monsters.

The walls were bland brown sandstone, the only light guiding Zelda were torches lining the walls. Zelda didn't have time to wonder where she was, because the rattling of sand in her chest turned into a sharp pain in her lungs, and the royal collapsed to her knees coughing.

Taking several measured breaths Zelda tried to regain control of her breathing before some monster heard her gasps for air. Using the wall for support Zelda stood flinching in pain. As she attempted to breath the Princess idly brushed her now messy hair out of her face. Her normally immaculate hair was frayed and disheveled. Zelda let out a mental curse her tiara was gone, though not particularly important at the moment it was a memento from her mother, so it held some significance to the royal.

Her breathing finally easing, though a slight pain still rattled the royal's lungs. Zelda knew she had to continue on. It was nearly unheard of for floormasters to roam outside of a dungeon. Ganon must have order them out into the desert to heed any attempts the teammates made to get out.

Where the floormaster had taken her, Zelda could only guess she was in an underground labyrinth of some kind. That left one very worrying thought with the royal. Samus was now alone in the desert, and even if she could get to Hyrule she would find no help there. Even if there was someone who knew sign language it would be a different dialect from the hunter, and they would no doubt not understand anything she would try to tell them. Who would believe the word of a stranger that randomly comes and says the Princess was in danger anyway.

Taking a few uncertain steps her lungs burning, Zelda resumed her trek through the dark halls. A roar resonated down the halls, looks like the moblin noticed her absence. Picking up the pace Zelda hurried to put some more distance from the monsters. Her thoughts focusing on getting away, and of her silent friend who was now alone in the desert.

* * *

Miles above on the surface a mass of sand exploded into the air. In frustration the hunter had fired a missile at the sand, causing a cloud of dust to erupt around her. After the strange hand creatures had dragged Zelda under the sand. They had ceased their attack on Samus. Clearly they were only trying to stall the huntress, so that they could separate the teammates. The hands retreated back under the sand staying out of the hunter's reach.

Samus' visor allowed the hunter to see Zelda's heat signature disappear as the monsters dragged her farther and farther under the sand. While Samus could do nothing. Standing tall Samus took a deep breath to calm herself, she would not let anger and panic command her actions. She would act rationally, remain in control, and find Zelda before any harm came to her. Samus doubted Ganon would allow his minions to end the royal's life, he would want to do it himself.

Thinking there was no way she could dig through all this sand to get to Zelda, the hunter began formulating a new plan. Thinking on it, Samus believed there must be some sort of structure under the sand that the hand monsters dragged Zelda to. Samus was broken from her thoughts when a loud snort brought her attention to the boar like creature that had followed her.

A bulbo, Samus remembered Zelda called it. The creature resembled a large boar with black short fur, and large tusks protruding from its mouth. The boar snorted again stomping its foot in the sand, as if angry at Samus for running so fast and leaving it behind.

Samus gave the boar a quick pat on the head as an apology. Before she could return her focus to thinking of a way to get to Zelda the boar took hold of Samus' arm in its large jaws. Not biting hard enough to hurt the Samus, not that it could get through her armor anyway, but the bulbo pulled on the hunter.

The huntress didn't budge gazing at the boar. It snorted not letting go, pulling on Samus' arm. It looked like it wanted to take her somewhere. The bulbo let go, jumping away it threw its head away from Samus in a follow me gesture.

Taking a glance at the sand Zelda disappeared under, Samus cursed. She wasn't going to make any progress here, so she might as well see where the bulbo would lead her.

It appeared to be able to tell Samus was ready to follow it, because the bulbo took off Samus dashing after it. She easily caught up to the creature matching its pace. Samus followed the creature across miles of empty desert with nothing in sight. When the sun began getting low in the sky, Samus began to wonder if it was a mistake to follow the creature.

Then off in the distance something strange caught the hunter's eye. Once close enough the boar and Samus skidded to a stop, Samus looking in confusion at what was before her.

Solar panels stuck out of the ground, their polls supporting them disappearing under the sand. There shouldn't be this kind of technology in Hyrule, Zelda had told Samus several times that Hyrule lacked technology but made up for it with magic.

The boar snorted looking pleased with itself that it had lead Samus here. Patting the creature's head Samus went to investigate the seemingly random panels gathering the sun's energy. Samus silently hummed to herself in thought, these panels had to be gathering power for something. Perhaps if she destroyed them whoever put them here would come and investigate. Since the hunter doubted any resident of Hyrule put these here, it had to be Ganon.

With barely no effort on her part five solar panels lay shattered on the ground broken by the hunter. Just like she thought the ground shuddered, and a large sand dune not to far away began shifting. The sand parted and out of the dune two stone doors slide open. Out of the doors walked two human lizard like creatures following behind them was a strange robot like being.

The monsters were hardly paying attention as they were harassing the robot behind them. The robot was of technology Samus wasn't familiar with, certainly not from her world. The robot was a grey color with red highlights constructed of three main segments. Its rectangular head had two beady black eyes that were looking worried as the monsters hissed at it.

The one lizard shoved the robot ahead of them with its shield, and Samus sprung into action. The creature cried out as Samus dashed forward and slammed her arm cannon into its jaw, a horrible crack resonating from the beast. The other monster stood shocked never getting the chance to retaliate, as Samus fire a missile ending its life as well.

The robot jumped back away from the hunter making several alarmed sounding beeps. Samus scanned the one creature that wasn't obliterated by her missile to confirm it was dead before turning to the robot. A loud beep came from the mechanical creature, and the robot shrunk back as if afraid it was next to meet its end.

Samus dematerialized her arm cannon, raising her hands in a passive manner to show she meant no harm. The robot calmed a little with Samus' weapon gone. It let out a series of beeps the light on top its head flashing.

Scanning the mechanical being Samus' suit reported that it couldn't identify the technology. Though it noted that the technology was similar to that of Subspace tech. Ganon must have stolen some of Subspace's technology to plan this, Samus thought dryly. There wasn't much else Samus could do for the creature, turning Samus began to walk into the underground entrance that had been revealed.

The robot let out a loud beep and rush towards the hunter grabbing her arm. Its hands were unsuited to actually grab her, but the robot tried to pull Samus away from the entrance. Samus pulled her arm away shaking her head at the robot. Rematerializing her weapon Samus walked through the sandstone entrance. Stone stairs lead down underground confirming Samus' earlier thought of there being a structure under the sand. Behind her Samus heard the boar creature let out a howling like noise. Taking a glance back the beast was sitting at the entrance, but didn't follow.

The robot however hurried after Samus making another concerned beep. Samus would tell the creature to stay here if she could, but it wasn't like the desert was any safer for the robot. Besides the creature could be useful in getting back to Subspace.

Now many might shrink in fear at the thought of exploring an underground labyrinth under the desert. Samus was in her element though, she has traveled through much more dangerous places than this labyrinth. Compared to the depths of the impact crater on Tallon IV, or the now destroyed world of Zebes, this was nothing.

As Samus traveled through the seemingly endless sandstone halls the robot followed silently. Which Samus was grateful for, the robot seemed to understand Samus' need for subtlety. These tunnels were clearly vaste there could be hundreds of monsters hidden within, and nobody would even know. Not that Samus was all too concern about being found, she could handle any monsters. In fact Samus purposely let her suit's metal footstep echo through the halls. If Zelda was around she would hear the hunter, and try to locate her hopefully.

Samus's footsteps were quick and purposeful. She moved quickly but slowly enough to not miss any important details. Her suit mapped out the tunnels as she moved so there was no risk of getting lost.

The hunter was miles deep before she found something of note. Trekking down one of the many bland stone halls Samus paused looking down seeing something glint in the dim torch light. Bending down Samus picked up something familiar.

Zelda's crown the normally gold accessory was dirty covered in sand, but still recognizable as the royal's. Samus' thumb idly wiped off some of the dust from the sapphire gem at the tiara's center.

Standing up Samus kept the jewelry clutched safely in her hand. She was on the right track Zelda had been here, now she just had to follow the trail. A sharp hiss caught the hunter's attention before she could continue on her way. Moving quickly down the hall Samus peaked behind a corner spotting another one of those humanoid lizard monsters.

It was on all four legs sniffing the ground. Its forked tongue slipping out of its lips as it sniffed. Was the creature smelling her, or perhaps had Zelda escaped and the creature was hunting her trail. The lizard's head rose sniffing the air, standing up it crept down the hall towards Samus.

Hand still clutching the crown Samus spun around the corner firing a missile at the beast before it had even had a chance to think. Samus kept moving without a second thought, but she did note the robot trailing her avoided the dead body of the creature as if it would come back to life and attack it.

The hunter didn't concern herself with the mechanical creature following her though. She had one mission to find Zelda, and that was all that concerned her.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Whew, I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter yet, and it's where everything blows up. Just a quick message for my closing note this time. I plan on finishing this story, no matter how long between updates this story is getting done. I've put way too much thought into this to give it up, so if waits for a new chapter are ever long don't worry they will come at some point. With that reviews are loved see you guys next chapter!**_

 _ **Side Note. To the friendly guest reviewer who is only know as head cannon guest don't worry the rewrite wasn't your doing. I've written and rewritten this story about seven times. Maybe at some point I'll share how the plot was originally going to go for fun, but for now I thank you for sticking with me and reviewing friendly guest. Hope you stick around to see Samus kick Ganon's ass;)**_

 _ **Further side note. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed you guys are what keeps me determined to finished this! Love you all see you next chapter!**_


	13. Game Match

_**A.N. First chapter of the new year! I hope everyone had a good one. This chapter has been the bane of my existence, I did enjoy writing it, but that's the problem I have written, rewritten, then rewrote it again like five different times! It was fun of course and looking back at all the things that were going to happen and then didn't I'm satisfied on how the chapter came out. But still so much time spent on this chapterXD. With that enjoy:D.**_

* * *

Chapter 13 Game Match

Zelda could hear the monsters slinking through the tunnels around her. She thanked the goddess for her good hearing, it was the only thing stopping her from running into something highly undesirable.

Hurrying down one of many tunnels Zelda turned left at a crossroad, hearing monsters coming from the other hall. Hearing nothing in the immediate area Zelda leaned her back against the wall taking a deep breath.

Triforce glowing on her hand Zelda placed the hand over her chest focusing her magic. The painfully rattling in her lungs dulled, and Zelda felt herself breath easier. There wasn't much she could do for her shoulder at the moment. Her magic couldn't reset the appendage, so for the time being Zelda would have to rely on her left hand. It was far too painful to try to do anything with the dislocated arm.

Zelda's ears twitched hearing something coming. The Princess got ready to move when she froze upon hearing the sound better. It wasn't the sound of claws clicking against stone, or the hulking footsteps of a moblin. This sound was metallic heavy but steady with each click it made against the stone.

Not wasting a second Zelda rushed towards the sound. Her own boots echoed through the tunnels, if any monsters were looking for her they would be able to hear her now. That didn't matter though, Zelda didn't have any doubts what was making that familiar metal clicking.

Turning a corner Zelda's face lite up with joy.

"Samus!" The hunter's green visor locked onto the Princess upon spotting her. Zelda ran the distance separating them throwing her uninjured arm around the hunter's frame. Samus caught the royal easily gently returning the hug.

In reality, Zelda shouldn't have been surprised that Samus managed to find her. The metal clad warrior was a hunter after all. It didn't matter how though, the teammates were reunited again, and Zelda couldn't feel safer than with the metal warrior's arms holding her.

After a moment the two separated, Zelda wincing as Samus' arm bumped her shoulder. The hunter's visor was already glowing looking the Princess over. Zelda smiled lightly sensing the hunter looking worriedly at her.

"Don't worry Samus I've certainly had better days, but I'll be alright. Are you okay?" The hunter didn't seem to accept her reassurance, but before she responded to the royal Samus placed something in Zelda's hand. Looking at the given object Zelda's features brightened significantly.

"My crown!" While dirty the jewelry was just as it was before, and Zelda couldn't believe Samus found the tiara. Though hard to do with one hand, Zelda adjusted the jewelry back on her head feeling better upon having the familiar metal rest on her head.

"Thank you Samus, now you're not hurt are you? How did you find me?" The hunter shook her head indicating she was fine, and Zelda believed it. There was barely a scuff on the armor. Though the normally shiny metal was dull and covered in sand, clearly Samus had trekked through the desert to find her. To her second question Samus signed a simple answer.

" _I am a bounty hunter for a reason."_ Zelda's eyebrow rose if she could have the royal would have crossed her arms.

" _Your arm,"_ Samus pointed to the limp appendage her manner showing her concern for the Princess' health.

"I can't heal it unless the joint is back in place." The hunter nodded her arm cannon changed back into a hand.

" _I can fix it."_ Samus stated, gently taking hold of Zelda's arm. The Princess nodded trusting Samus knew how to relocated the appendage.

It didn't take long for Samus to help correct the dislocation, and soon Zelda while still sore her arm was as good as it could be. Now that she wasn't in constant pain the royal was able to think a little more clearly. Glancing behind Samus Zelda saw a strange looking machine like creature.

The robot made a loud beep in fear moving to stay behind Samus.

"Making new friends?" Zelda smirked at the hunter who stepped aside so Zelda could see the robot. Zelda took a step towards the robot trying to appear as friendly as possible.

"Hello there I am Princess Zelda, you've already met my friend Samus." The royal motioned to the hunter, and the robot seemed to relax. It made several beeps of various volume and tone. Zelda frowned unable to make anything out of it.

"Can you understand him?" Zelda turned to the hunter who shook her head.

" _I found him being harassed by some monsters. I think Ganon might be forcing it to work for him."_ Nodding Zelda agreed, that does seem like something Ganon would do. Despite not understanding it, the robot did seem to understand her.

"Excuse me, are you from Subspace? Or any world other than this one?" Zelda knew the robot couldn't be from Hyrule, and the robot nodding only confirmed that.

"We were fighting in a tournament in Subspace. Do you know a way for us to get back there?" The robot nodded several times, before turning heel and heading off down one of the tunnels. Both hunter and royal followed, Zelda glancing at Samus as they moved.

"How could Ganon get a hold of Subspace technology? What is he trying to accomplish?" The dark lord's goal in life was to take over Hyrule Zelda knew but, getting Subspace involved seemed like it would only complicate things. Perhaps Ganon was simply getting even more greedy and wished to control even more worlds than just Hyrule. Samus shook her head, she no idea what the dark lord was up to.

The robot lead the teammates through the winding labyrinth. They met a few monsters along the way, but they were easily dispatched by Samus and Zelda. Eventually they were lead into a large chamber. Inside Zelda's eyes widened at a large circular mass of black energy pulsing in the middle of the room. There was strange machinery positioned around the energy, clearly either creating or controlling it.

Around the energy dozens of monsters surrounded it. Zelda saw a few jump head first into the energy not returning. Once the monsters noticed the teammates at the door they positioned themselves defensively around the portal. One lizalfos pointed a black claw at the robot hissing. The mechanical creature hide behind Samus fearful of the horde of monsters.

The monsters stood no chance against the combined power of the two teammates. Each attack they made was completely in sync with the other. When the last monster fell the robot gave out an excited beep hovering around Samus and Zelda. The royal grinned at the mechanical being, happy to have rid the area of monsters. Another beep sounded out and Zelda spotted another robot exactly the same as the other come out from hiding behind the portal. The two robots greeted each other happily, and Zelda felt her heart warm at the sight.

Feeling a light tap on her shoulder Zelda looked to the hunter. She pointed at the pulsing ball of energy taking up most of the room. Zelda nodded going over to the two robots.

"Sorry to interrupt, but is this a portal to Subspace?" The one robot nodded, Zelda frown at the knowledge. If this was a portal then Ganon has been sending his minions into Subspace. That didn't bode well at all.

Zelda looked at Samus and the hunter nodded moving towards the portal her visor glowing.

"We're going through, we have to stop Ganon. Are you two staying here?" Though Zelda had no issues with the robots being in Hyrule. She was concerned that they would be used once more for evil purposes. The robot shook their heads the one pointed at the other before motioning to the door that lend back into the labyrinth of tunnels. Zelda's brow furrowed in thought, but after spending so much time with Samus she has become quite good at figuring out things one could say through motions.

"There are others of you trapped here?" The robot nodded.

"Do you need help?" The royal in good conscience couldn't leave these robot to be used as tools in Ganon's game. The robots both shook their heads, appearing grateful for the help they were already given. Normally Zelda would argue, but right now they had bigger problems to worry about.

"Very well, could you please close any portals you find. We can't have Ganon sending anymore monsters into Subspace." The robots noded, giving a wave goodbye as Zelda turned to Samus and the portal.

"Let's go," Zelda took Samus' hand and the two stepped into the portal.

* * *

"Pathetic! You're supposed to be a hero! What a joke!" Ganon's taunt was ignored as the hero of Onett dodged a blast of magic fire from a ghost like creature. Ness tried to summon his psychic powers to help, but before he could even think what to do a heavy fist collided with his chest.

Ness took a rattling breath blinking away the blurriness. The blackness of the dark portal filled his vision, and Ness turned to face away from the pulsing mass of energy. The hero had been unfortunate, and had been near the area where the portal was created.

Swarmed by unknown monsters, Ness had been completely unprepared when Ganon appeared and attacked him. Ness rolled onto his back only to be met by a boot slamming into his already injured ribs.

"Weak, even with your psychic powers." Ganondorf snorted in disgust, the malicious giggling of his minions echoed around them. Laughing as their master was about put an end the young boy's life. Dark magic glowed in Ganon's hands, and Ness closed his eyes preparing for the end.

It didn't come however the next thing Ness knew gently arms were holding him. He opened his eyes and saw dark blue and white fabric. Turning his head blonde hair tickled his face, and Ness realized he was being carried.

"Are you okay?" A soft melodious voice asked, Ness weakly nodded his head. He had no idea what was going on why Ganon was attacking or who was carrying him. All that matter was that he was alive.

"It's going to be alright, just relax." Ness heard the person, the woman Ness realized say. His world was disappearing, but at the very least he felt safe.

* * *

"You," the amount of venom Ganon spoke with made Samus smirk. The dark lord had easily recovered from the missile Samus had fired at him. It was only meant to distract him so Sheik could slip by unnoticed and grab Ness. As soon as the teammates had exited the portal they sprung into action seeing Ganon about to murder the Hero of Onett.

The monsters that surround Ganon all began to converge on Samus, but he held a hand up and they stopped. They all backed off growling and glaring at the hunter.

"I should have known you'd make it back. The savior of the galaxy, you certainly seem to live up to the name." Ganon spat out the name savior as if he ate something disgusting. He began circling the hunter, Samus mirroring him. The two locked in like two lions gauging the others strength before fighting.

"No more games hunter, this is where it ends." Dark power glowed in Ganon's hands, Samus' HUD flashed a quick warning of the energy behind the power. Samus was unphased by it, she stood firm letting Ganon make the first move. Ganon clenched his first and a bright golden triangle appeared on his hand.

Charging forward Ganon threw himself at the hunter, jumping in the air he landed with a small explosion of dark magic. Samus had to jump back to avoid being caught in the impact. She had to move forward quickly though, as once she made some distance from Ganon the monsters surrounding them tried to take a swipe at her. The hunter avoided but she noted that the monsters surrounded them in a circle, they weren't interfering. However it was clear they would not allow any escape.

Not that Samus had any plans of running, the hunter never ran. Sending a volley of missiles hurling at Ganon Samus jumped out of the way of a magically charged punch from the dark lord.

Ganon let out a frustrated grunt as one of the missiles exploded against him. Waving away the smoke Ganon rushed forward again. The two met exchanging blow after blow, both blocking or avoiding the other in a fast pace dance of who would make a mistake first.

"I wonder where the Princess is hiding?" Ganon said between hits being exchanged. Samus didn't react or show any outward sign she even heard Ganon speak.

"Do you hope to keep me distracted, so your dear Princess can deliver a surprise attack against me." Jerking away Ganon slammed his fist into the ground causing an explosion of dark magic, chucks of concrete went flying in every direction. Samus changed into her morph ball rolling back, avoiding debris as it flew.

"You'll be sadly mistaken then," with a quick swipe of his hand several monsters perked up. Quickly they went off dashing towards the area Samus knew Zelda had taken Ness. The hunter fired a missile at the dark lord so his attention would return to her. Samus had faith in Zelda's abilities she wouldn't fall. She wouldn't let Ganon distract her from the battle happening now.

Running forward Samus went on the offensive rolling into her morph ball form she easily circle around Ganon. As he was turning to face her Samus didn't give him any room to deflect as she slammed her arm cannon into his back and fired.

A low grunt was all that came from the dark lord, but it was clear from the gaping hole in his cape and burning wound on his back that he had been injured. Ganon returned the favor he span around leg raised, the appendage slammed against Samus' arm as she blocked it. Ganon jumped his other leg kicked up bashing into Samus' helmet. Magically charged Samus's HUD flickered taking massive damage from the magic.

Ganon landed back on the ground with a thud, and swiftly found a super missile exploding in his face. The dark lord cursed loudly reaching out through the smoke trying to grab Samus. The hunter dodged seeing black electric magic spark in Ganon's hand.

He went to grab her again, but as Samus was dodging something hit her back making her flauter just enough for Ganon to get a hold of her. Pain erupted through the hunter's body as Ganon lifted her off the ground pouring every ounce of dark magic at his disposal into the hunter.

Finished he threw Samus aside, the metal warrior landed with a loud thud. Samus grunted she heard the sound of metal falling to the ground. Glancing at the ground red shards of what had been the jets on her back fell to the ground. One of the monsters had hit her allowing Ganon to get a hold of her.

"Give up hunter? I could still use a warrior of your skill, it'd be a waste to kill you." Samus' eyes narrowed under her helmet. Pushing herself off the ground, Samus got back up. If Ganon believe she would ever bow to him, then he was delusional. Glancing at the monsters around her Samus knew if she wanted to take Ganon down with ease they were going to have to go.

Quickly Samus fried several missile at the ground. The explosions caused dust to fly around the battlefield masking it. Ganon disappeared in the dark dust, quickly while he was distracted Samus dash over to the closest monster. A lizard creature, it shrieked when Samus grabbed its tail throwing into another nearby monster. She finished them both with a missile. A strange creature with glowing yellow eyes dodged a missile fired at it and giggled with glee.

The happiness of the monster gave away Ganon who had stalked through the dust jumping he missed Samus, his boot coming down to slam on the ground instead.

While he was still low Samus kicked the dark lord, a sickening crack sounded as her boot connected with his head. Ganon made a noise that Samus could only akin to a growl. He charged at the hunter punching and kicking trying to beat the hunter down.

His moves were getting sloppier, easier to dodge but Samus could feel more force coming from each hit. Ganon extended his arm trying to punch the hunter, Samus grabbed him by the wrist pulling him forward and into her arm cannon. The hunter fired a missile right into Ganon's head.

This time Ganon seemed to almost roar with angry. With his free hand magic was blasted right into the hunter's visor. Both were thrown away as Samus fired again at the same moment Ganon let his magic loose.

Both stumbled away from each other. Blood ran down Ganon's face, and a large crack now ran across Samus' visor splitting it in two. Ganon's eyes narrowed black magic swirled around him. Samus raised her arm cannon charging the weapon.

Samus fired, and Ganon threw a mass of magic the explosion was like a clap of thunder resonating throughout Subspace.

* * *

Not far away Sheik flinched feeling a shock wave ripple through the air. She didn't get time to turn around and look at it though dodging a stalfos' blade before jumping and kicking the creature's skull off its body. It stumbled trying to reclaim its lost head, but Sheik swung her chain like a whip scattering the creature's bones everywhere.

The sheikah panted already having defeated several other monsters, but they just kept coming. She could easily get away from them, but that would mean she'd have to leave Ness behind. That option wasn't on the table.

Throwing a deku nut at a lizalfos Sheik hurried and ran one of her knives through the creature's throat. Another explosion ripped through the air, and Shiek doubled her efforts to defeat the monsters stopping her from returning to her teammate's side.

Samus shouldn't face Ganon alone, and Sheik shuddered in fear of what was going on not too far away. Sheik had changed into Zelda quickly, and healed Ness enough that he was in the clear. The hero of Onett would not be waking up anytime soon though, so it was just Sheik against the monsters.

A moblin charged through the ranks his axe held high. Sheik threw her chain, the metal wrapped around the monster's legs causing him to trip. Before Sheik could end him though two lizalfos jumped forward swords raised. Sheik backflipped away landing on her feet throwing down a deku nut. The lizard men shrieked as the flash blinded them.

Again before Sheik could capitalized on their distraction a poe flew in firing magic fire at the sheikah. There were too many, with more time Sheik could fight defensively and eventually thin out their ranks. She didn't have that time she had to get back to Samus now.

Two lizalfos stalked over to the unconscious form of Ness, and Sheik quickly threw another deku nut. Rushing forward she scoped Ness back into her arms jumping away from the monsters.

Dodging blades and magic fire alike, Shiek looked around there had to be a way she could escape this horde. Another explosion sounded through the air. Then Sheik saw it, a manhole cover the only thing stopping her was a moblin's foot firmly planted on top it.

Holding Ness close as she dodge the blade of a lizalfos. Sheik threw down a deku nut blinding the enemies around her. With her free hand Shiek grabbed her chain and threw it. It wrapped around the moblin's wrists, the creature growled pulling on the chain. Instead of pulling it herself, Sheik wrapped the other end of the chain to the leg of one of the blinded lizalfos.

The moblin yanked the lizard towards him, thinking he was going to get the sheikah. The lizard man hissed him angry upon seeing that the moblin had dragged him across the field.

The two began to quarrel other monsters losing focus on the sheikah as their kin fought. The moblin had stepped off the manhole, and quickly Sheik pulled the heavy metal cover open. Before slipping inside Sheik grabbed her chain that had become untangled from the monsters. Sheik landed in the sewer with a splash the cold water making the sheikah shiver.

Sheik was glad for the cloth covering her face, because even still the rancid smell of the sewer made her cringe. Adjusting Ness in her arms Sheik ran. Hopefully there would be another manhole cover nearby that she could use to get back to the surface.

The ceiling above her shook, crumbing stone fell as the battle raged on above. The sound only made Sheik move faster, her boots splashing in the water with each hurried step.

Soon Sheik spotted a ladder leading up to another manhole. Climbing up she carefully lifted the cover to get a peek at what was above. Nothing.

Warily Sheik slipped out still holding Ness. Looking around she stopped no dangers, a few poes flew by overhead. They didn't notice Sheik, or they were too busy with their own mission. A noise caused Sheik's ears to twitch, just in time she jumped out of the way as thunder came down from the heavens. Spinning around Sheik saw a familiar face.

"Pikachu!" The pokemon in question jumped down from a ruined building he had attacked her from.

"Chu!" Pikachu dashed over to her, an apologetic look on his face. Sheik knelt down and patted his head. The pokemon appeared alright, his fur was dirty and he looked a little rough. Otherwise he seemed in perfect health.

"It's okay Pikachu, are you alone?" The pokemon's ears drooped his tail dropping too. Carefully Sheik laid Ness down near the building Pikachu had been in. Once Ness was out of sight Sheik turned back to Pikachu.

"Pikachu, I need you to protect Ness until I get back. I'm going to go help Samus." At the mention of the hunter the pokemon perked up. He must have been looking for the hunter himself before finding Sheik.

"I know you want to help her too, but someone has to make sure nothing hurts Ness." Pikachu's ears dropped again, but he nodded. He went over to Ness' prone form and curled up next to him. Sheik nodded in approval before turning, she threw her chain and pulled herself up onto one of the collapsing buildings. It wasn't hard to spot the monsters gathered in a circle around the fighting. Hastily Sheik moved heading towards the fighting.

* * *

Samus grunted in pain a sword from a lizard creature jutted painfully from the less armored spot between her right shoulder and her chest. Everytime she began to gain too much of an upper hand on Ganon, his minions would step in. Ganon was still slowing down though, and Samus knew even with his monsters aiding him, with every second going by he was getting closer to falling.

Ganon charged the hunter aiming for the embedded sword, trying to get it to cause more damage. Samus jumped back, grabbing the sword she yanked it out using it to take a swipe at the dark lord. The sword slashed Ganon across his chest, adding to the many injuries the hunter had already inflicted.

Both jumped away from each other, Ganon jerked his head and two skeleton creatures jumped into the fray. Samus frowned, the dark lord's games were becoming tiresome. Switching to her ice beam the first skeleton froze in place with one charged blast. The other ran forward shield raised. Samus threw the sword she still had, and it landed squarely in the monster's shield the force of it making the creature stumble. The hunter dashed forward knocking the shield out of its hand before firing a missile in its face.

Samus had to switch into her morph ball to avoid Ganon's fist. This had been the dark lord's tactic once it was made clear to him he was not going to beat Samus one on one. He would use his many minions to try and distract Samus, or do damage while he would lie in wait.

The two exchanged several blows before Samus heard something moving behind her. She readied for an attacked, but instead a loud shriek from one of the monsters sounded out.

Then she felt something rush from behind her, and Ganon was thrown back clutching his face a throwing knife embedded in his left eye. Samus felt a gentle hand on her arm, and looked to see Sheik standing next to her. Glancing around the monsters that had surrounded her were only a few now. Even still they all looked shocked at the newcomer, none of them moved.

With a nod to Sheik, Samus charged up her arm cannon. Ganon ripped the knife from his eye, and with a furious yell he ran at the two. Sheik slipped away from Samus' side, using her chain she threw it and wrapped it around Ganon's legs.

The dark lord stumbled, and Samus fired. She heard monsters yell and shriek as their master fell. Ganon stood jerking the chains around his legs off. He took exactly two steps towards Samus. Hand raised it glowed with the golden power of the Triforce. Then the glow disappeared, and Ganon collapsed.

* * *

 _ **A.N. And with that the first act of this story is coming to a close. Only one more chapter and then we'll be onto the interlude and then the events of Brawl, fun times. Thanks to all the lovely reviewers hoped you enjoyed the chapter, reviews are loved^^.**_

 _ **Ps. To headcanon guest, you should make an account so I can message you and we can talk about metroid. I have put waaaaaayyyyyy too much thought into the metroid universe, and would love to hear your thoughts on it. Do it. Please.**_


	14. Game Saved

_**A.N.**_

 _ **Hello lovely readers! Not much to say in this opening note, but this is the final chapter of the melee arc of the story. Though I thought about splitting this story into two and calling the next one The Grand Brawl. I feel like it would be easier to just keep everything together in one story. That way its all rolled up into one, no one has to follow another story to read the rest. So don't worry this isn't the true ending;). With that enjoy the chapter!**_

* * *

Chapter 14 Game Saved

"What a mess this turned out to be." Link heard Marth say from behind him. Looking around at what was left of Subspace he had to agree. Just a few hours ago the portal that had destroyed a good chunk of Subspace had disappeared. A good amount of monsters running through it before it disappeared.

"You known when they told me the tournament would be exciting. I didn't think they meant villain taking over the world exciting." Roy said, and Link frowned still looking around at the ruined Subspace. Out there somewhere in the ruins was his friend. There were still plenty unaccounted for, but the only one that concerned Link was Zelda.

Zelda and Samus must have defeated Ganondorf, that was the only explanation for the monsters' retreat and the portal disappearing. The only place the heroes haven't checked yet was where the portal once was. There were still a good amount of monsters lingering around, so the area was still fairly dangerous.

Pikachu, Ness, Zelda, and Samus were all still missing, and the heroes were determined to find the other fighters. Hefting his sword in his hand Link used it to point out into the distance.

"All right break time over guys, I'll check around the crater itself. Split up and search the remaining buildings." Both swordsmen nodded, they both understood how important to Link it was to find Zelda, so they didn't complain when he gave out orders. The hero of time was still injured, but after the heroes had regrouped Link was able to get his lost gear and get himself some medical attention. Though he was told to rest, it would take nothing less than the goddesses themselves to keep Link in bed while his friend was still missing.

Rubble crunching under his boots Link moved towards the sizable crater that the portal had left. Though he wouldn't admit it, Link was worried about the hunter too. He knew all too well how powerful Ganon was, and despite Samus' strength Link worried.

Link raised his sword spotting the large form of a moblin. He lowered it slightly though upon getting closer to the creature, it was dead. The hero hummed to himself there were other dead creatures laying about. Someone had fought here that was for sure.

Eyes widening Link rushed over to the fallen form of a lizalfos. In its neck was a knife, but not just any knife. Sheik's knife, she had been here fighting from the looks of it.

Getting up Link kept moving he was close, but Zelda obviously wasn't here anymore. When Link got closer to the portal he spotted more dead bodies. These monsters were slain in different fashions, some by knives, others by explosives.

He kept moving, a big battle must have happened here, and Link had an idea who the contenders were. Looking at the ground Link saw blood, red not from a monster. Leaning down Link touched the tiny puddle, it was still fresh. Whoever the blood belonged to couldn't be far.

Not too far away a couple more droplets of blood lay on the ground. Forgoing checking the crater Link went over to the blood. It was a trail more droplets lead to whoever was leaving them.

The blood trail lead him to one of the collapsed buildings. Link thought he could see figures moving inside, but before he could check something large landed behind him with a thud.

Link whipped around shield raised, heart pounding only to lower both his weapons and smile.

"Metalhead! Never thought I'd be glad to see you!" Link's grin upon seeing it was just Samus turned into a frown rather quickly. The hunter looked like hell, their normally bright orange armor was covered in dust and dirt. Chips and dents marred the armor, the one shoulder guard was completely destroyed. There was blood leaking out of a stab wound. It must have been Samus' blood that he followed here, Link realized. What startled Link the most though was the hunter's cracked visor. The normally opaque visor could been seen through now, and the piercing eyes that gazed at Link erased any doubts he once had about her. Those were not the eyes of some emotionless machine, they were human.

Before Link could say anything else a familiar voice yelled.

"Samus! I told you to stay put and rest!" Link grinned hearing that tone, grinning even more when it wasn't directed at him.

Out of the building came Zelda a glare on her face looking for the hunter. Pikachu close behind, Link gave her the widest grin waving.

"You know I kind of like it when it's not me you're yelling at. It's pretty funny!" Link called out Zelda looked at the hero in shock but she recovered quickly. Before Link could blink he was being embraced by his friend.

"Thank the goddess you're okay." Link didn't say it, but he thought the same thing. When the two let go of each other Link looked over the Princess. Compared to her metal companion the Princess appeared in decent shape. No worse than when they first fought Ganon back in Hyrule.

Link was about to say something but Zelda turned to Samus.

"Don't think I've forgotten, you should be resting." The hunter raised her hands about to make some sign to the Princess, but Zelda silenced her with a glare.

"If that sign starts with I and ends with fine, I am going to knock you out." Link couldn't help but choke on a laugh. Samus had stopped her signing and raised her hands in a passive manner. While Link felt maybe he should help the hunter out, himself having been under the scrutiny of Zelda's glare many times before for the same reason. It was just too funny watching the intimidating hunter yield to the Princess.

"Come on Zelda, it's a hero thing we don't know what rest is." Link said, finally deciding to save the hunter. Zelda huffed, turning back to Link her face becoming concerned.

"Are you okay? We were going to try and find others after resting for a bit." Zelda's statement was followed by a pointed look at Samus who shrugged. Mentally Link agreed with Zelda, the hunter looked like she could stand to rest for a bit.

"As good as can be considering everything, what about you guys?"

"I've had better days I'll admit, but I'm fine. Pikachu and Ness are doing well, Samus has the worst of it." Zelda motioned to the building where Pikachu and Ness were. Link was about to ask what happened to them when a monstrous growl echoed through the air. Samus had her arm cannon up and was scanning the area within seconds.

"Let's swap stories later, the others are looking for you guys too. Let's all meet up and get somewhere safer." Zelda nodded, she glanced at Samus who gave the Princess a nod. The hunter went back into the building returning with an unconscious Ness in her arms. Pikachu trailed behind the hunter ears perked up looking for potential threats.

Once they had met back up with Roy and Marth the small group began the walk back to where the other fighters were gathering citizens of Subspace. Samus had handed Ness off to Marth for him to carry. On the way Link explained what happened on their side. With Ganon bringing a horde of monsters into Subspace, trying to sow chaos so he could kill all the fighters with ease.

Zelda went on to explain their side, and Link felt his blood boil when the Princess explained how Ganon sent them to Gerudo desert in order to kill them.

"It's a good thing you two got there when you did, or else we would have lost Ness." Marth said grimly, glancing at the young hero. Zelda nodded in agreement, at the time the gravity of how close Ness came to death hadn't hit her. She was too busy worrying about Ganon himself.

"So Ganon's dead?" Roy asked glancing where the portal had been. Zelda frowned her brow furrowing she crossed her arms.

"I'm not sure, we didn't get a chance to check. The portal began to close after he fell, and monster began fleeing. We couldn't chance getting into a another fight, so we retreated back to where Link found us." Samus nodded in confirmation, though Link could see anger in the hunter's eyes. Inwardly he smirked like any true warrior, the hunter was not satisfied not knowing if Ganon was truly gone. Outwardly Link frowned, Ganon lived he knew it. The bastard was probably back in Hyrule right now licking his wounds.

"At least everyone is safe now." Marth said with a small sigh brushing some of his blue hair out of his face. Roy crossed his arms.

"Yah, everyone is safe and that's all well and good, but I doubt the tournament is going to continue now. So does this mean Zelda and Samus win, since they sort of did save the day." Roy looked to the Princess who immediately shook her head.

"I didn't do much, Samus was the one that did most of the fighting." The hunter shook her head, but she was walking behind Zelda so the Princess didn't see it. When she did take a glance the hunter stopped, and Link grinned wondering how he hated Samus again.

"I'm sure Samus would be happy to share the title, right metalhead?" Samus nodded, while Zelda sighed defeated.

"Don't encourage her, she's hard enough to argue with as it is." Link and Roy laughed while Marth merely shook his head in exasperation at his fellow swordsmen.

The rest of the journey back was mostly quiet, so Link took this time to observe his friend. Zelda had her arm linked with Samus', holding onto the hunter which Link found odd. The Princess despite being one of the most kind hearted, friendliest person Link knew, she was not a touchy kind of person. It was part of being royalty Link knew, touches even friendly ones were a private matter. Sure she just hugged him, but that was from relief that they were both alive. Normally, Zelda restrained herself. If they were back home people would assume that Samus was courting Zelda by the way the Princess held onto her now. A funny thought, but it did make Link happy seeing Zelda so relaxed.

Link almost missed it, but being the swordsman he was he spotted Samus flaunter as if she was about to collapse for split second. She stayed upright of course continuing to move as if nothing happened. The hero frowned continuing to walk behind the hunter and Princess. Link saw Zelda whisper something to the hunter, but even with his hylian ears he didn't hear it.

The hunter gave Zelda a small nod, leaving Link to wonder how injured the hunter truly was. Zelda seemed to have an idea going off of how she yelled at the hunter to rest earlier. Speaking of rest, the hero felt his own exhaustion creeping up on him. He had barely stopped since Ganon's attack began. Now that his heart was at ease with everyone safe, he was beginning to feel the strain that he was sure everyone felt.

Looking at the sky the sun was above the horizon, it was hard to believe hours ago they were all fighting for their lives. Turning his gaze back ahead a good rest would certainly be welcomed by everyone.

* * *

" _He has failed as predicted." Master Hand's voice was emotionless giving no clue to how he felt on the matter. Nor did the being he spoke to gave any indication that he cared._

" _I am aware puppet, do not restate things that I already know." The almost god-like being spoke, his voice sounding like a chorus of thousands rather than the one he appeared to be. The disembodied hand floated below the being not saying anything._

" _He has done what was predicted, bring more chaos to this already despicable world. Order must be brought to this world and all others...Recall the R.O.B.s have them begin construction, have Ganon kept in the dark." The being moved his hands and small bubbles appeared around him. Like tiny televisions each showed a different world, the fields of Hyrule, the Mushroom Kingdom, skylines of Corneria, and the forests of Tallon IV. The human figure stared at these bubbles with eyeless sockets that seemed to see everything._

" _Imperfect, all of it." With another wave of his hand out of nothing black masses bubbled and took shape. Creatures with purple skin and red eyes crawled out of the darkness._

 _The being paused then it raised its head as if realizing something, it looked out into the distance at something._

" _Nayru gives you foresight, but this future is inevitable. I am order, I am peace, I am Tabuu. Begone."_

Zelda awoke with a jerk panting, her thoughts jumbled. Sitting up she ran a hand through her mussed hair. A dream yet she couldn't recall what happened in it. The Princess rubbed her forehead, she hated when this happened. Her dreams warned her of danger, but sometimes she wouldn't be able to remember what happened in the dream.

Shaking her head it was pointless to worry about something she couldn't remember. Perhaps it was just a normal bad dream, and she was worrying over nothing. Looking out the window sunshine flooded the small room. Like most of the fighters Zelda had taken up residents in a hospital room, in one of the less damaged hospitals in Subspace.

Though Zelda felt fine now, a few days of rest doing her wonders. After they had regrouped with the other fighters, and everyone was fix up as much as they could. The more technology inclined fighters had fixed the communications, so word could be received from Master Hand.

Zelda's eyebrow twitched thinking of the creator of Subspace. He claimed he had no clue of Ganon's plans, and was just as surprised as everyone else when he attacked. Zelda found that suspicious, but didn't comment on it. Everyone was safe and Ganon was gone at least for now.

Master Hand declared the tournament over, since half of Subspace was tore asunder. He stated it would take a few days to get the warp technology ready to send everyone home, but in the meantime most of the fighters were happy to lend a hand to the citizens of Subspace in fixing the destroyed city. Master Hand claimed the tournament would begin anew in a years when Subspace was repaired. Zelda just hoped he won't make the same mistake and invite some terrible villain that would try and bring ruin to everyone again.

Getting out of bed Zelda got dressed, and fixed her hair before exiting her room. Quickly she left the hospital happy to get out of the way of the many doctors and nurses so they could do their jobs. Outside she saw Mewtwo across the street using his psychic powers to help put a pokemon center back together. The Ice Climbers were helping a frazzled looking toad repair his flower shop, and Zelda spotted Bowser helping a group of Goombas carry rubble from a destroyed building away.

After Zelda herself had gotten back to full strength. The Princess had used her magic to help heal others, but today Zelda had other plans. She has not seen Samus since they got back with the others, and Zelda was concerned. In fact the hunter was being elusive as of late to everyone. The few times she asked Link if he had seen her Link reported he hadn't. Same with a few of the other fighters she asked. Even Pikachu had made a whining noise, indicating he hadn't seen her.

The hunter, while she would say otherwise, was badly hurt in the fight with Ganon. Knowing Samus she probably didn't get proper medical attention like everyone else. So today Zelda was going find Samus yell at her for being so reckless, then either heal her, or drag to a hospital to get medical attention.

Stopping her walk Zelda thought for a moment, where would Samus be? If she were Samus and she'd want to avoid everyone where would she go, the Princess mused. Zelda frowned right now there were a lot of places. Subspace was still a mess, there was a large amount of monsters leftover that didn't make it to the portal before it closed. The little grove in the park came to mind, but Zelda remembered the park had caught fire during the attack, so Samus couldn't be there.

Most of the city was still considered unsafe… Zelda eyes narrowed, of course. Walking briskly to the largely ruined part of the city. She was definitely giving Samus a word or two when she found her. Going off and fighting while everyone else either rested or helped with repairs. The hunter was going to be the death of her.

Then again Zelda knew she shouldn't be surprised, Samus wasn't really the relaxing type. Getting to the edge of the more intact part of the city Zelda found Roy standing lookout for any monsters that would try to get in. He gave Zelda a friendly grin waving at the Princess.

"Hey Princess, what brings you out here?" The fiery haired swordsman was patrolling around looking for monsters, making sure nothing would threaten the citizens of Subspace.

"I'm going to go look for Samus. I have a feeling she's out and about…" Roy cut her off grinning.

"And you're going to go give her a good lecture on resting after fighting the lord of darkness." He laughed as Zelda didn't say anything to confirm or deny it.

"Have fun Princess I think I heard some explosions a little north of here, might be her." Zelda thanked Roy ignoring his laughter. She headed out in the direction he suggested having nothing else to go on.

Zelda's ears twitched listening for anything out of the ordinary. She was confidant that she could handle anything left over from Ganon's attack, but being by herself after having her metal companion by her side for so long was strange.

In a way, Zelda felt more at ease with Samus when they were in the horror that was Gerudo desert. Than right now by herself in the collapsed ruins of Subspace.

When she was a good distance away from the safer area of Subspace Zelda heard something click. She jumped out of the way just as a lizalfos came from the shadows. It hissed at Zelda, fire ignited in her hands ready to end the monster.

Before she could though a missile came from above exploding in the lizard creature's face. It cried out before falling dead. Then a large thud sounded out behind Zelda.

She turned to see Samus getting up after jumping from the building she shot the creature from. Zelda hurried over to the hunter looking them over. Her armor was still dirty not its normal bright orange, but the damage from before was not there. Her shoulder was repaired as was her back, even the crack that had marred her visor was gone. Zelda wasn't so certain about the person inside the armor though.

"Samus there you are, I've been looking for you." Samus tilted her helmet as if confused as to why Zelda would be looking for her.

"Yes, I've been looking for you. I was worried, I didn't see you get any help after all the fighting." Zelda could see the beginnings of Samus signing I'm fine, but was cut short by a glare. Instead the hunter corrected and signed something else.

" _I've had worse."_ The Princess withheld an exasperated sigh, she could tell that was just another way of Samus saying she was fine. She crossed her arms eyes glaring at the hunter.

"That doesn't make it okay for you have injuries Samus. Now either let me look at your wounds, or I'm dragging you back to the hospital." Samus form straightened to her full height, usually Samus knelt down a little when speaking with Zelda so it was easy to forget she towered over even the fairly tall Princess. Her posture spoke that she'd like to see her try and force her to do anything.

Clearly Samus didn't expect Zelda to actually do anything, because when Zelda moved the hunter was on her back in seconds from Zelda kicking her legs out from under her. Zelda smiled sweetly down at the hunter.

"Now if you don't make a fuss I promise not to tell anyone how I knocked the scary bounty hunter over." The Princess teased helping Samus back up. Samus looked at Zelda indignantly, but she nodded. Zelda grinned taking the hunter's hand they began walking back.

"Thank you, I'd rather not worry about you pushing yourself and getting injured while we're still here. I'm already going to be worried when we all leave." Master Hand gave the promise the warp would be back up by the end of the week. While Zelda couldn't help but be excited at the thought of going home. None of them would be coming back for a years, it was hard to fathom not being around her metal clad friend for so long. Life and death situations tended to forge such bonds Zelda supposed, but still with the small glimpses that she got of Samus' life. The Princess was half tempted to drag the hunter back to Hyrule.

Samus tilted her head in questioning.

"Of course I'll worry about you. You have a nasty habit of not taking care of yourself, and I take upon myself to do it for you." Though she couldn't see it she knew there was an amused smile under the helmet.

Zelda stopped walking, they were still a good distance from anyone else. The Princess frowned and Samus waited for her to speak her mind.

"I'll miss you," the statement clearly surprised the hunter. She didn't sign a response only waited for Zelda to continue. Jokes aside it was finally sinking in that they would be leaving soon. After everything Zelda found the thought of so much time without Samus around left a cold feeling of loneliness creeping up on her. She rubbed the back of her hand anxiously just thinking about it. Samus took Zelda's hands causing her attention to return to the hunter.

" _I'll miss you too."_ The hunter admitted after letting go of Zelda's hands to sign.

"Promise you'll be careful, I don't want to think about coming back and you not being here." The thought made Zelda shuddered. She remembered the vile looks the space pirates gave Samus when they came to attack Link.

" _I promise."_ There was a finality in Samus' motions, and Zelda knew Samus wouldn't break a promise. Without a word Zelda wrapped her arms around the hunter's frame. Samus returned the hug without hesitation this time. They stayed like that for a moment longer before Zelda pulled away. She took Samus' hand smiling.

"Come on let's enjoy the time we have left. It isn't forever after all, we'll see each other again." The hunter nodded, following Zelda without a word as always. Not that Zelda cared, as long Samus was by her side, silent or otherwise everything was fine.

* * *

 _ **A.N.**_

 _ **Bam that is the end of Melee, feeling pretty proud of myself for getting this far. Now there's going to be a two chapter interlude then we'll get into Brawl:D. I hope you've all enjoyed the story up to this point, because the romance is finally going to be coming soon. I wanted to cement Samus and Zelda as close friends before moving onto romance for them. They're pretty much the best friends that everyone thinks they're together, but they keep telling everyone they're not. Of course that's going to change though, with that reviews are loved as always and I will see you guys next chapter!^^**_


	15. Game Paused part 1

_**A.N. After a long break I'm back guys. Sorry for the wait but I decided to take a break from this story for a while since I had the first arc finished. Plus I got busy with midterms and classes and all that jazz. I'm back though bet you guys thought I disapearedXD! So good news is I'm on spring break for the next week, and I'm eager to get back to work on this story. With that I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter of the interlude.^^**_

* * *

Chapter 15 Game Paused part 1

"What do you mean the Queen is busy?" Link glared at the hylian guard making the man flinch where he stood. The hero wanted to scoff at how cowardly the castle guard were. No wonder he was able to sneak past them when he was a child.

"Her majesty Queen Zelda is not taking visitors today sir. She is in talks with with the Zora emissary, and has no time for idle talk." The hero groaned loudly causing the guard to give him a confused look. It has been four months since they returned to Subspace and two since Zelda was coronated Queen. It was weird to not think of her as Princess Zelda anymore, but Link knew what kind of responsibility came with the title. He knew Zelda would be even more busy once she became Queen.

He just had no idea how busy. This had been the third time Zelda was tied up with some royal duty, and didn't even have the time to see Link. It was the second time Link had the unfortunate news given to him by some poor castle guard who had no idea how to deal with the disgruntled hero.

"Can she at least spare a few minutes to say hi. I'm sure Hyrule won't fall apart if she takes a five minute lunch break." The guard scratched the back of his head unsure. Link wanted to slap himself, hopefully this wasn't the model for what all of Zelda's guards were like. This man looked like he'd barely seen the outside of the castle let alone fought anything. Maybe Hyrule would fall apart if Zelda looked away for two seconds.

"I...I will check with her Majesty and see to your request sir." The hero huffed, crossing his arms while the guard went off to see the Queen.

To be honest Link had been worried as soon as they got back. He could tell Zelda was upset about leaving Subspace. Scratch that Link wasn't that blind, she was upset about leaving Samus. The two had become close over the failed tournament, and without the metal companion around Zelda had gone into full royal mode.

Not that it was a bad thing Link supposed, from what he heard from the people in Castle Town things couldn't be better with Zelda's leadership. Link didn't expect anything less from the wise royal. Yet it saddened him to know how closed off Zelda was letting herself become. Link liked to think they were close, and they were no one could understand what they went through together. However when Zelda wore the face of the ruler of Hyrule she would never confide to him her worries. She was always the picture of the stoic yet kindhearted Queen.

Looking around there were no other guards around the front entrance of the castle. Link spotted one up above in a window, but from what he could see they were half asleep barely watching for threats. Link frowned Zelda really needed to work on the Hylian guard. Knowing Zelda she probably didn't want to train soldiers when in her mind peaceful solutions always took priority. Still even in peace times it didn't hurt to have a strong sword watching your back. After all monsters still prowled Hyrule fields at night, even with Ganon twice defeated now his minions still lurked in the shadows waiting for their master's call.

Link huffed, he knew this guard wasn't going to ask Zelda herself to see him. There was no way he had the guts to talk to the Queen herself. Link would bet he was talking to his superior right now, who would order him to tell Link that the Queen was busy.

Enough of this, Link thought. Waltzing right past the door Link entered the castle. It's not like he was an intruder. Zelda told him many times this castle was home to him if he needed it. Link lived at Lon Lon Ranch with Malon, but it was nice knowing he was always welcomed.

Walking down the halls Link thought where he would find the Queen. She was either in the throne room talking to the Zora, or in her study working on paper work. Link headed to the study first since he was wise enough to know how pissed off Zelda would be if he interrupted a royal meeting.

He was in luck though upon making it to the door of Zelda's study he heard the sound of a quill scratching against paper. Link frowned there wasn't even a guard posted outside the study. Impa, Zelda's old sheikah caretaker, if she were still around would be flipping out at the castle's lazy guard.

Link threw open the door as dramatically as he could.

"Your majesty, I demand you have lunch with me!" Link laughed as Zelda jumped in her seat at Link's entrance. A bottle of ink was knocked over and Link heard Zelda say a rather unqueen-like string of curses.

"Link! What in the goddesses?" Zelda stammered, surprise at seeing the hero in her study. Surprise was soon replaced with anger as she removed a now ink covered glove, using it to pick up the bottle of ink that was still leaking over her papers.

Link just smirked waltzing in and plopping down on the plush seat across from Zelda's desk. He looked around he'd never really been in her study before. He smiled at how it just screamed Zelda. A fire place was on the far wall, a warm happy flame bathing the room in its warm glow. A painting of Lake Hylia hung above the mantle. On the other side of the room two bookcases made of fine chestnut wood. Every book on their shelves were worn and clearly read many times over.

When his eyes finally went to the royal herself Link's eyebrow rose.

"Since when do you have glasses?' Zelda blushed removing the spectacles, folding them and putting them in a drawer in her desk. She glared at the hero before closing her eyes and rubbing her temples.

Link's amused grin from his teasing turned to a frown of concern. Zelda looked worn down and stressed, Link guessed it came with being a queen. Ruling an entire country alone couldn't be easy. The royal looked like she needed a much needed break from dealing with the problems of Hyrule.

"Link, please tell me you didn't harass any guards to get in here." So Zelda did hear of Link's attempts to come see her. It kind of upset the hero that Zelda knew Link tried to come and visit her, but she didn't make the time to spend with him.

"Please the guards barely noticed I'm here." Link scoffed at the idea of the guards being any trouble to him. Even if they took the time to notice the hero, like any guard could be a match for Link.

"Now back to the matter at hand your majesty. You have not been spending enough time with your best friend. My feelings are hurt." Link made a mock upset face appearing really torn up over the matter. Zelda rolled her eyes before going about removing the ink soiled papers from her desk.

"I'm sorry, things have been hectic since my coronation. There is lot of things that need done, treaties need renewed, taxes need fixing, and there's still the issue of monsters in the fields…" Zelda went on listing the many things on her plate. While she folded the ink soiled paper and tossed it into the fireplace. Link briefly felt a bit guilty, that paper had probably been something important, and now it would need to be rewritten.

"Sorry about that," Zelda snapped out of her exhausted movements glancing at Link before taking out a rag from her desk drawer and began wiping the ink on her desk away.

"It's fine, it was nothing important just a letter to one of the lords." He didn't know much about Hyrulian politics, but he knew the the higher nobility usually only caused problems for the Queen. As far as Link could tell, it was pretty much Zelda's job to keep the upper class from doing anything stupid or unsavory.

"A letter? What about?" Link asked curiously, he didn't really know about everything Zelda did as Queen. He knew she lead Hyrule, but he wasn't sure what that entailed.

"Just a polite refusal of marriage, many of the lords are trying to get a chance at ruling." Zelda spoke with indifference, but Link could see her eyebrow twitch in annoyance. Link imagined it must be tiresome having dozens of lords asking to marry them only so they may become King.

"Not interested then?" Link grinned, wondering if this lord asked Zelda to her face or sent a letter. Both were equally humorous.

"Of course not, Lord Fallon can barely keep his family in line, let alone help rule Hyrule." There was still a tight indifference in Zelda's voice that told Link she wasn't saying her real thoughts on the matter.

"And you know, you sort of don't love him. Unless you've been busy these past months." This caused Zelda to pause in her idle cleaning of her desk, she smiled.

"Yes, that too. How have you been Link? That last shipment from the ranch was wonderful. I assume all is well with Malon?" Finally Zelda stopped messing with her work, and folded her hands neatly on her desk looking at Link.

"Everything's great, Malon thinks we should try at finding Epona a stud, but if she has a foal she'll be out of commission for awhile." Zelda chuckled knowing to Link riding any horse other than Epona was a crime.

"I'm sure Epona will forgive you." The royal reassured the hero, Link was about to say something else when there was a knock at the door.

"Enter," Zelda's expression became serene, appearing the perfect queen. A guard opened the door bowing respectfully before speaking.

"Your majesty, the Zora have arrived and are ready to speak with you." Zelda nodded, standing she walked around to the other side of her desk.

"I'll be ready for them in a moment, show them to their rooms in the meantime." The guard bowed with a quick yes your majesty before turning heel to carry out her orders.

"I'm sorry Link I'd love to talk more, but I really…" Link didn't let her finish standing up himself.

"It's alright duty calls, next time instead of me sneaking in how about you just clear a spot for me on your schedule." The Queen nodded, appearing grateful that Link didn't seem to be planning on bursting into her study again.

"I'll try, stay safe Link." The hero nodded leaving the Queen to her duties. Though he frowned as he left he heard another servant approach Zelda as he left, asking her to tend to some other matter that had come up. Link frowned he was definitely going to have to break in a few more times.

* * *

Across dimensions on a planet far out of anyone's view Samus watched the rain gently fall on Tallon IV. Sitting on a cliff overlooking a waterfall despite the calm environment, Samus was anything but calm right now.

Just a few weeks ago the hunter had destroyed the B.S.L station along with it SR388, the home planet of the metroids. Looking back it seemed simple contain the horrid X parasites within the station, Samus had certainly done more difficult missions. Even when the parasites had infected the hunter, and nearly killed her.

Samus was lucky the baby metroid had yet again saved her with its DNA. While grateful for her life, Samus had never felt so wrong. She felt cold, even after defeating the monstrous version the X had created in her image. Reclaiming her full abilities from it in the final battle against the omega metroid.

The hunter shuddered thinking of the SA-X. It had been like looking in a mirror, except those soulless eyes stared back at her. Samus felt her breathing quicken, she tensed as if ready for the creature to appear behind her.

A light tap on her shoulder made Samus jump, but she came back to reality quickly. She looked to see one of the dachora she had released from the station looking at her with worried violet eyes. The dachora were a green ostrich looking creature from Zebes, one could say they were Samus' last connection to her destroyed home.

The dachora made an upset squawk watching Samus with intelligent eyes. Samus ran a hand through the bird's feathers calming the creature as well as herself. Along with another species from Zebes, the etecoon Samus had found both on the station. They helped her escape before the station had crashed into SR388.

Samus had wondered why they were on the B.S.L. thinking on it now it was probably a good thing she brought them with her after fleeing the station. The Federation had been cloning metroids and wanted the X parasites contained so they could be used for military purposes. The thought left a foul taste in Samus' mouth. How could the Federation even think of going so low. Both the metroids and the X were too dangerous, and anyone who thought they could use their power was a fool.

Clearly the Federation didn't agree and now Samus found herself public enemy of the Galactic Federation. Soon after escaping the station the Federation caught up to the hunter demanding her to surrender to face trial for disobeying orders and destroying the station and SR388.

Surrender was not an option, so Samus retreated to the outer parts of the galaxy. It was then she had to make the difficult choice to part with the ship the federation had given her. The ship that had the computer version of her old commanding officer Adam built into it.

The ship being of Federation make would have been easily tracked, and Samus had to disappear before the Federation could commit too much to finding her. Adam had agree that it would be best if they separated, but he promised Samus that he would root out the corruption in the Federation once they had retrieved the ship. On a fringe world Samus had left the ship to be found in a hanger while she purchased an old junk ship so there would be less chance of anyone recognizing it.

Looking up at the rain hitting her visor, it was strange being the hunted. At the very least since Samus was such a good hunter she knew how to stay out of a hunter's sight. After she left Adam there were few places she could go where the Federation wouldn't catch wind of her.

Samus thought about going to Aether, but she couldn't ask U-mos and the luminoth to harbor an enemy of the federation. Elysia was out, since it was under Federation control. Of course there were plenty of shady planets where criminals made their home, but Samus has made plenty of enemies. Many who would be happy to accept money from the Federation and tell them where she was.

Despite being fully capable of taking on the Federation by herself. Samus had no desire to do so. If she fought them it would only end in the deaths of innocent soldiers that were just following orders. The corruption was not their fault, it would be pointless murder to fight them. Samus didn't want their blood on her hands.

The only place Samus could think to go was Tallon IV. A former chozo world brought low during the phazon crisis. It was recovering now since Samus destroyed the phazon infecting the world. Slowly the planet was becoming the paradise it was before the deadly element had ingrained itself within the planet.

She brought the animals from Zebes with her, feeling this planet would be suitable for them. They seemed happy to have a new home, and Samus was glad to have saved them from some Federation lab.

Getting up Samus made her way down off the cliff. With nothing else to do Samus went to the ship she had purchased. Samus knew her bank accounts would be frozen by the Federation so she was glad she acted quickly and bought the ship before her access was barred. She had gotten some parts as well to make the ship presentable since she figured it would be her home until the Federation let up on their search for her.

There was nothing else to do, but work on the ship and reflect on recent events. Walking through the lush greenery of the Tallon Overworld was slightly relaxing. The creatures had become more docile since the phazon had been eliminated from the planet. Though Samus probably wouldn't have mind if something attacked her. At least it would provide a distraction from her thoughts.

Walking through a shallow stream Samus caught a glance of her reflection in the water. The hunter wished she had her old power armor instead of the new fusion suit. It only reminded Samus of the combining of the metroid DNA to her.

Years of fighting metroids made the hunter's skin crawl at the idea that she had their DNA mixed with her own. Of course Samus couldn't blame the metroids for their crimes. After all the metroids were just animals trying to survive, very deadly animals that could absorb the lifeforce of any being. Still just animals that were at the mercy of whoever tried to chain them.

It was too much to hope that they were truly gone now. If the Federation had been cloning them on the B.S.L. Samus had no doubts there were other facilities doing the same.

Betrayal was the only thing Samus thought of when she thought of the Federation cloning metroids. Hypocrites, the hunter huffed. The Federation condemned the pirates for doing such things. When in the end they were no better. The Chozo trained her to keep peace, but the galaxy seemed to content to stew in its destruction. She gave the Federation the baby metroid because she believed they would do good with the young creature. Samus was wrong though, and just like the pirates the Federation wanted to make a weapon of the creatures.

Looking up at the sky Samus shook her head. Let the Federation destroy themselves then, Samus thought bitterly. The hunter had devoted her life to protecting the galaxy, but look at what it has brought her. Nothing, the chozo were gone, her allies in the Federation were now bound by their code to hunt her. What was the point of defending a world that didn't want protection.

Walking with no real direction in mind Samus headed to the elevator to the Chozo ruins. Standing as the elevator brought her to the ruins Samus frowned. She was alone hunted for doing the right thing, or at least what she believed was right. No, she couldn't second guess herself now, it was too late for that.

The Chozo ruins were mostly the same since the last time she was here. The trees growing around the ruins were looking livelier thanks to the lack of phazon. Any ruins of her long extinct family always calmed Samus' nerves. Though Samus could spot the small differences between them, the ruins on Tallon IV were much like Zebes in a way. It reminded Samus of much simpler times when all she had to do was become strong under the guidance of her Chozo family.

Making her way to the sun chamber Samus looked at the giant flower that had once been the mutated monster Flaahgra. Now it was just an ordinary flower blooming from the sun's rays. This room was probably once a place where the Chozo would gather, and meditate under the Sun's rays. Sitting down on the edge of the mote of water surrounding the flower, Samus sighed.

Her throat tingled and the hunter coughed at the unfamiliar feeling. Another gift from the baby metroid she supposed. When the scientists used the metroid DNA to heal her. The DNA had rebuilt much of what the X had destroyed. Including the Samus' old damaged vocal chords.

Samus could speak again, but the hunter didn't really care. Who was she going to talk to anyway. Besides after so long without using her voice it felt strange to speak. The Federation had been ecstatic at the revelation that her voice was repaired. Claiming it would make it easier to work with the hunter. Samus scoffed, looks like the joy was for nothing.

It left Samus with the nagging thought of what to do now. Currently her only goal was to wait out until the Federation stopped actively looking for her. After that Samus didn't know. All Samus' life she always had some goal to achieve whether killing Ridley or putting the metroid threat to an end. Now with the pirates as weak as they've ever been, and the Federation against her. She wasn't sure what to do, all she knew was how to fight.

The hunter felt exhausted, and not just because she hadn't been sleeping well since the events of the station. She was tired of everything, of fighting, of the Federation, of the loneliness. It was suffocating but Samus didn't know what else to do. The chozo taught her to fight and defend the peace, nothing more. Was there anything else Samus could do?

A noise broke Samus from her musings. She sprung up arm cannon ready looking for any potential threats. The noise crackled again like electricity. It was coming from on top the flower, quickly Samus jumped onto the plant.

On top the flower the air was crackling with purple sparks. Scanning the area Samus' suit reported that it was picking up energy similar to that of the portal Ganon used back in Subspace.

Ganon? Was the dark lord attempting to take over her world now. The hunter wanted to laugh at the idea, the space pirates and Federation would certainly have something to say about anyone getting in their way.

The air crackled and shifted, Samus was about to jump away. Then the the air exploded as mass of black energy expanded. Samus was caught in it before she could move to escape.

It was dark and Samus thought she was dead for a moment. Then her world came back into focus, and the hunter realized she was falling. She landed on the ground with a crash grunting as she picked herself back up.

She wasn't on Tallon IV was the first thing Samus realized. Soft grass was under her feet and a soft breeze blew across the field. Samus didn't get time to further investigate her surroundings as she sense something behind her.

Spinning around Samus raised her arm cannon only to flauter upon seeing who was behind her. Riding a horse wearing casual cloths was a shocked face Link. Samus' expression mirrored his though Link couldn't see it with her helmet.

"Aran? What the hell? Uhhhh... nice new armor." Link jumped off his horse taking a few steps near the hunter, looking at her warily as if he wasn't sure what he was seeing was real.

Samus lowered her weapon, her suit confirmed this was real. She wasn't hallucinating she was no longer in her own world. A portal had brought her back to Zelda and Link's world, Hyrule. After a moment Link seemed to confirmed that Samus was indeed real. He crossed the distance between them approaching the hunter.

"I saw something weird in the sky and came to check it out. I take it you didn't plan a vacation to Hyrule." Samus shook her head, and Link frowned.

"Hmm well nothing we can do about it for now. You're here and I doubt it's a good idea to let a walking weapon arsenal waltz around Hyrule fields. Think of the poor bandits that would be stupid enough to attack you." Samus rose an unseen eyebrow at Link's joke. It was odd she was still used to Link being hostile to her, so out right joking around her was unheard of.

"Come on, Hyrule castle is this way. I know someone who will be over the moon to see you." Samus nodded numbly following Link as he got back on his horse leading her to Hyrule Castle.

Zelda, the thought of the royal made Samus smile. With everything that had happened Samus hadn't had much time to think on her former teammate. The thought of seeing her made Samus almost excited. Alone in her own world she had nearly forgotten she had a friend in the hylian royal. A friend was something that Samus knew she needed when everyone in her world now turned against her. Perhaps for once the universe had handed her a favor for all the hardship she had endured recently.

Link talked on the way as they journey across the green fields. He spoke of how Zelda was coronated Queen and how Link himself had settled down at a ranch here in Hyrule Fields. As they approached a small town Samus could see a castle looming in the distance.

Entering the town Link greeted everyone they passed with a friendly wave. They returned it, but then looked at Samus in amazement. It was strange Samus was used to people looking at her with either fear or anxiousness. In her world, her armor was known as a deadly weapon that helped her destroy anything in her path.

The people of Hyrule had no idea what Samus was capable of, and if they did they knew nothing of Samus herself to pass judgment on her. It was nice, everyone who didn't have their head in the ground at least heard of Samus back in her world. Here she was truly unknown.

"It's not much but Castle Town is pretty nice. Everyone here is pretty friendly, just be careful about the games. Those guys that run them will swindle you out of all your rupees." Link's friendliness was still odd, but not unwelcomed. It kind of reminded Samus of listening to Federation marines banter with each other before a mission.

As they approached the castle the path had a few guards patrolling the dirt path, but otherwise was not heavily defended. Samus assumed that since Hyrule was not a violent nation there were no need for many guards. Still Samus felt a slight tinge of worry for the royal. If something happened to Zelda...No, Samus didn't want to think about it.

Two guards stood outside the main doors, both appeared bored out of their minds. One of them glared at Link as they approached.

"Let me handle this," Link whispered to the hunter before the guards were within ear shot. Samus tilted her head, was Link not welcomed in the castle?

"Sir Link, you know her majesty is still crossed at you for insulting Lord…" The guard that didn't glare at the hero was cut off by Link.

"Ya, ya, I'm sure Lord what's his name is still really steamed about it, but it's not my fault Zelda has to be super polite and can't tell him to go f…"

"Sir Link." The guard stopped Link, his voice exasperated. Samus got the feeling this wasn't the first time Link has had this conversation with the guard. He sighed, crossing his arms.

"What shall I tell the Queen is the reason for your visit?" He gave Samus a wary look, this man appeared to be more experienced than the other guard. His weathered face turned to look back at the hero.

"Are you actually going to tell her I'm here this time, or am I going to have to sneak in again." The guard that had been glaring at Link looked even more disgruntled at Link's statement.

"I will deliver the message myself Sir Link." Link shrugged in a way that said if the man was lying Link would make good on his word of sneaking in.

"Tell her an old friend decided to drop in." The guard nodded, and turned heading into the castle. Link looked to the hunter grinning like mad.

"Metalhead, you have no idea how happy Zelda's going to be to see you." The idea that someone would be happy to see her was new to Samus, but if her presence made Zelda happy. Who was she to argue with it, besides the hunter was happy to see Zelda again as well.

"I guess we should be worried about how to get you back to your world, but when the next tournament starts they can just send you back then. Or how you got here in the first place, but I'm betting you have an answer for that you just can't say it, right?" Link's mention of her former muteness caused Samus to remember it was no more. She could tell Link she had no idea how she got her, but the hunter stayed silent. Years of silence was a habit that would be hard to break. It was easier to be silent anyway.

The large doors to the castle reopened and the guard stepped out gesturing inside.

"The Queen will see you in her study." Link gave the guard a quick thanks before waltzing inside. The hunter followed silently receiving an odd look from the hylian guard. They passed a few maids and butlers scurrying about their business, but no other guards that Samus could see. The castle halls were large with a plush red carpet guiding those who walked them. They passed a few paintings on their way to the study, a few with landmarks Samus didn't recognize, others of people Samus could only guess were the kings and queens of old.

Link threw open a door going inside despite the startled gasp that came from inside.

"Zelda you're never gonna believe who I found!" Samus entered the room silently, the fusion suit was lighter and made less noise as she moved. She looked over to see Zelda sitting at her desk glaring daggers at Link. The royal hadn't even noticed her entrance too busy glaring at the hero who half sat on her desk.

"Link you know I'm very busy, winter is approaching and I need to make sure we have enough crops stored for the season." Zelda scribbled something quickly on a piece of paper, dipping the quill in a bottle of ink pausing. Samus frowned the royal looked stressed beyond belief, the hunter supposed ruling a country alone would do that to someone. Then again Samus didn't have much room to talk, as she was sure under the armor she didn't look too great either. The effects of having one's DNA altered were not pleasant, it was through sheer will and strength that Samus wasn't bed ridden right now.

Zelda paused the feather still in the bottle looking at the entrance of her study, more importantly at the hunter standing in her doorway.

"By the goddess!" Zelda jumped from her seat, luckily Link caught the ink pot before it spilled over the desk. The hero fixed the pot, and slipped out of the room grinning. The next thing Samus knew slim arms were wrapped around her waist and Zelda was hugging her tightly.

"Samus! How in the goddesses name did you get here? Not that I'm unhappy to see you of course." The royal took a deep breath not letting go of the hunter, though she did lessen her hold enough to look at the hunter. She smiled and Samus relaxed for what felt like the first time in weeks.

Zelda was about to pull away so that Samus could sign, but the hunter held onto the royal. The princess...Queen now Samus amended, felt warm even with Samus' armor separating any true contact. It wasn't until the royal was in her arms that Samus really began to process that she was actually in Hyrule with Zelda. Not alone brooding in the rain, but she was here probably with her only friend.

The Queen gave her a confused look, then it clicked in Samus' head. Her voice, she could actually speak to Zelda now. Aside from a few words exchanged with Federation scientists, Adam was the only one to hear her speak. Samus cleared her throat trying to recall how to form the words she wished to say.

Zelda seemed to see Samus was trying to speak, but not knowing her voice was repaired. The Queen looked at Samus with a frown thinking Samus was trying to force a broken voice to work.

"I'm fairly good at sign language now. You don't have to…"

"Zelda," Samus' voice was rough from disuse, but the royal's name came out with ease. Zelda eyes widened shocked at the clarity from Samus' voice, as the last time Zelda actually heard Samus speak it was broken and barely audible.

"You...you can speak!" Old habits die hard and Samus nodded, only to realize to vocally answer. Zelda stopped her though tapping her visor gently.

"Don't force yourself, I'd imagine it's quite odd to speak after so long." The hunter nodded, how Zelda knew what she was feeling with only glance she would never know.

"If you're more comfortable signing go ahead, but I would love to hear your voice more." It was a good thing no one could see Samus' face, because she felt herself blush. She gave Zelda a nod grateful the royal knew how strange to actually speak was for Samus.

Before anything else could be said a knock sounded at the door. Zelda frowned pulling away from the hunter, Samus felt cold without the royal in her arms.

Some maid or stewart was on the other side of the door. They exchanged a few words with the Queen, Samus didn't catch most of it too caught up in her own thoughts. She did hear Zelda say to clear her schedule that she was not to be disturbed for the rest of the day. The servant bowed leaving and Zelda closed the door. The Queen glided back over to Samus taking her hand.

"Come, I'd say we have a lot of catching up to do."

* * *

 _ **A.N. Did you guys really think I would keep them apart for too long nooooooo these two chapters were planned from the beginning and I was eagerly awaiting when I could write them. Also real quick I thought about keeping Samus mute, but I wanted to stay somewhat close to metroid canon. Don't worry though I don't see Samus as much of a talker so there still won't be too much dialogue coming from her.**_

 _ **Just a few thoughts before I leave you guys, cause it wouldn't be a chapter from me unless I ramble about the Metroid or Zelda universe. When I was editing this chapter I realized I bash on the Hylian guards**_ ** _a lot, and they deserve it! I replayed OOT not too long ago and it dawned on me this game never would have happened if the guards were just a tad more competent. Seriously, what guard let's a little forest child go to a mountain called DEATH mountain. I don't care that he had a letter from the Princess why would do that! Don't even get me started on that guy who throws a bomb in the garden the Princess is in!_**

 ** _I would like to ramble about my thoughts on the Federation and the metroid universe, but I'll save that for next chapter maybe. For now I hope you guys enjoyed it and I will see you guys next chapter:D._**


	16. Game Paused part 2

_**A.N. Hey party people first I'd like to say either fanfiction or my computer is being a jerk and refuses to let me save changes in Doc manager, so I've edited this chapter outside of Doc manager. Hopefully nothing got lost in putting it up, but that would be why my line spacings are missing this time. I'll fix it as soon as I get Doc manager to cooperate with me, but I didn't want you guys to wait any longer for this chapter. This by far is the longest chapter for any fic I've ever written, and it was a ton of fun to write so I hope you guys enjoy!^-^**_

Chapter 16

"So a portal opened up right in front of you, and brought you here?" The hunter nodded at Zelda's question, and the royal took on a thoughtful expression. That didn't bode well, the Queen thought. Hopefully it didn't mean Ganon was up to something, and was trying to drag Samus into it again.

"Unfortunately, you might be stuck here until a messenger from Subspace comes to tell us about the next tournament. We don't have any means of contacting them otherwise." The thought of having Samus around for so long sent an excited jolt through the royal. Despite her excitement though Zelda would feel horrible if Samus was kept from her world unwillingly.

The metal clad warrior shrugged her shoulders indicating she had no problem with the thought of staying in Hyrule. The former teammates sat on a sofa in the corner of Zelda's study while they talked. It was late afternoon so the setting sun filtered through the window bathing the room with its soft lights. The light of the fireplace reflected off the hunter's armor bringing the royal's attention to the new armor.

The armor wasn't too unlike the old one Samus wore. Same red helmet, but orange almost flesh like material covered the majority of the armor. It was sleeker and looked lighter than the old armor, and Zelda wondered if Samus simply had other sets of armor or something became of the old armor. The royal still had no idea how the armor worked, only ever seeing the hunter remove the helmet. At times Zelda wondered if the armor even came fully off.

"You're welcome here of course," Zelda said, knowing the hunter she probably wouldn't want to intrude upon the Queen's home. Even though Zelda was more than happy to have Samus around. Scratch that, she wanted the hunter around. She had barely been here an hour, and already Zelda felt calmer with her metal companion's presence.

"Thank you," The royal smiled hearing the hunter's voice. After hearing it way back at the beginning of the tournament Zelda never thought she would hear the hunter speak. Not that Zelda had a problem with that. Samus' mutism never bothered her, but she did always wonder what Samus' voice would sound like if it wasn't damaged.

Hearing it now it was exactly what Zelda imagined the calm metal warrior would sound like. It was low, still somewhat rough from lack of use, but as Samus continued to speak Zelda could hear it slowly becoming clearer. As they talked the hunter still mostly used sign language to communicate, the motions came before she remember the words could.

" _Do you think Ganon is up to something?"_ The royal frowned, she had not seen any sign of the gerudo king since his defeat in Subspace. Zelda doubted Ganon was up to something so soon. It would have been a major lost to him since a large amount of his minions were slain in Subspace. Plus his fight with Samus did a number on the Gerudo Lord. Not only physically, but it was a painful lesson to Ganon that he may be powerful in Hyrule. Subspace though, there were plenty of stronger people out there.

"No, it's too soon. It should take awhile for him to regain the strength he had. Besides Ganon is not so foolish to bring someone he knows can defeat him to Hyrule. That would only foil any plans he has of conquering the land." The Queen had a suspicion that there was greater going on here. Someone even stronger than Ganon was pulling the strings. What their goal was Zelda didn't know. Samus gave a nod agreeing with the royal that Ganon wasn't behind this.

"Are you feeling okay though? You just crossed over dimensions, I'd imagine that's not an overly pleasant thing." The hunter paused for a moment before nodding saying that they were fine. Zelda gave her a skeptical look, something was off about the hunter. She couldn't place it, but Samus seemed on edge, tense like she expected to be attacked or something. Zelda knew of only one way to see if Samus was being truthful.

"Samus could you take off your helmet?" It wasn't too odd of a request coming from Zelda, but the hunter still tilted her head questioning the request.

"I haven't seen your face in quite a while." Zelda smiled innocently, the hunter nodded before the familiar hiss of the helmet clicking off sounded out. Samus pulled off her helmet, and Zelda almost gasped. While the Queen knew she herself looked stressed, the hunter looked downright horrible.

Dark circles marred under Samus' eyes, and the hunter appeared gaunt like she hasn't been eating. The hunter's skin was pale and clammy, leaving Zelda to wonder if she was sick. Her messy blonde hair seemed dull, though it was still tied up in a ponytail like the last time Zelda saw Samus' face. The hunter saw Zelda's concern as soon as the helmet was off.

"I'm fine," the words were hollow, a lie that Zelda could see right through now. Zelda frowned, the hunter didn't make eye contact as if Zelda would be able to see through her if made eye contact. The royal took Samus' hand making the hunter turn her gaze to the Queen.

"What happened?" Samus didn't answer at first looking away from Zelda and staring at the fire burning in the hearth. When Samus was still silent Zelda spoke.

"You know I won't force you to tell me, but you shouldn't keep everything bottled away." It wasn't healthy and clearly it was beginning to catch up to the hunter. Samus sighed defeatedly, she was still silent, but Zelda could see she was trying to figure out how to explain things to Zelda.

" _I did something I thought was right, but governement in my world does not agree._ " A vague answer but at least the hunter was talking, or signing as it was currently.

"What did you do?"

" _I destroyed a space station and a planet."_ Zelda would have gasped at the magnitude of what Samus destroyed, but there was no guilt apparent on the hunter. She would wait to hear Samus' reason. The hunter was far too logical to do something without reason.

"Why destroy them?"

" _There were parasite life forms that could cause mass destruction onboard and on the planet's surface."_ The hunter's expression was tight, that seemed like a valid reason to destroy the station and planet to Zelda. Though the royal could see why the government would be upset at the station's destruction. Before Zelda could say anything though, Samus actually spoke.

"They were going to weaponize them." That didn't sound good, slowly Zelda was getting an idea of what happened. Samus didn't give Zelda a chance to speak continuing her voice rising in anger.

"I murdered all of them for a reason, and they wanted to recreate them to use them as weapons! They're no better than pirates." Samus' angry faded faster than it appeared, and the hunter slumped covering her face with the hand Zelda wasn't holding.

"I've tried to keep the galaxy safe, but it's all been pointless. I've failed…" Zelda felt Samus shuddered, acting instinctively Zelda pulled the hunter into a hug. Samus tensed at first before clutching the Queen tightly.

"You destroyed the parasites though right?" Zelda felt Samus nod.

"Then you kept your world safe, you didn't fail Samus. Your world is lucky to have a protector like you watching out for it." The hunter didn't let go, continuing to cling to the royal. When she finally did speak her voice still carried the defeated tone that Zelda wished would fade away.

"A lot of people would disagree with that." Gently Zelda separated herself enough from the hunter so that she could look at her.

"There are always going to be those that disagree, but I'm sure there are many in your world who are thanking their gods that you destroyed such a threat." Ruling a country had given Zelda plenty of experience with people disagreeing. While Zelda knew that Samus was right in destroying a dangerous creature that could be used as a weapon. She could understand why the government would be crossed with the hunter for destroying an asset like that. However Zelda knew for certain that while the officials might disagree. The common person once word would spread to them would see Samus actions for what they were.

Samus nodded processing the words Zelda said, while the Queen could still see the defeated look in the hunter she seemed a little better off than before. There was something else though, Zelda could tell something else happened that the hunter wasn't saying.

"Did something else happen?" Zelda asked, these things were clearly weighing heavily on the hunter. Though Zelda didn't like having to coax the hunter into revealing painful memories. She knew the hunter would be better off to having talked about.

Samus nodded, confirming that something else happened. Zelda waited, either Samus would explain or she would wish it to be left alone.

"The parasites had the ability to mimic any kind of creature….I can see why everyone fears me." Zelda tensed at the hunter words. Never once had the hunter ever showed that people's distrust bothered her, but clearly deep down it did. As for the parasites, once Link had to face down a shadow of himself created by Ganon. Zelda shuddered at the thought of a creature mimicking your face. No wonder Samus was shaken by the event.

Zelda pulled the hunter close again.

"For what it's worth I was never afraid of you." The Queen could never see Samus as the cold machine many believe her. It was just a shell, underneath the armor Samus was a kind soul that has suffered far too much.

"You're probably the only one." Zelda pulled away surprising the hunter by smiling.

"Now I think Pikachu would be insulted that you forgot about him." Samus lips upturned slightly at the mention of the yellow mouse pokemon.

"Remind me, and I'll apologize to him." Zelda wasn't done yet though as she remembered the hero of Onett.

"Also don't forget Ness, you didn't see much of him before we left, but I think he sees you as his hero since we saved him from Ganon." Ness had thanked Zelda for saving his life, and the Queen heard that he had done the same to the hunter. Link had mention that he saw the exchanged and from what he said it seemed like Ness was no longer intimidated by the bounty hunter.

"So a pokemon, a psychic boy, and you I think that's enough." Zelda couldn't help but think how sad it was that Samus was content with just three people seeing her for what she really was, but the small smile Samus had made the thought disappear.

"Feeling better then?" Samus nodded, looking more relaxed now that she wasn't being weighed down by such painful thoughts.

"Good, now we are going to have a nice dinner. Then I'm going to have a room prepared for you where you will sleep for at least eight hours." Zelda held a determined look as she ordered the hunter. The hunter looked exhausted, and Zelda wouldn't be satisfied until she rested for awhile. Samus smiled and for the first time she heard a short laugh come from the metal clad warrior.

"Is this how you treat all your subjects _Queen_ Zelda?" The royal blushed not expecting such a teasing tone from the hunter. She recovered quickly huffing and crossing her arms.

"Of course not, you get special treatment since I'm questioning if you take care of yourself at all. When was the last time you ate or slept?" Zelda rose from her seat while giving Samus a suspicious look. Samus stood as well picking holding her helmet ready to put it back on.

The hunter shrugged, running a hand through her bangs that were beginning to stick to her face from the sweat that clung there. Zelda frowned stepping towards the hunter she took off one of her gloves. Samus gave her a curious look before Zelda reached up and felt the hunter's forehead.

"Samus you have a fever! How long have you been sick?" Zelda wasn't surprised the hunter was ill, she certainly looked it. Again the hunter shrugged, seemingly not caring in the least about her health. Zelda's eyes narrowed, Samus' skin felt like a furnace under her hand, if the hunter was a normal human she knew Samus would not be so nonchalant about such sickness.

Inwardly Zelda sighed, wishing Samus took care of herself. Until the hunter did though Zelda certainly wasn't going to let the illness slide.

"Dinner can wait for now, may I tend to it?" Zelda gestured for Samus to sit back down. The hunter paused seemingly wary of getting any medical attention, Zelda recalled the hunter had chosen to let a doctor tend her wounds rather than the royal after the tournament's horrid end. Zelda got the feeling that Samus wasn't a fan of doctors or any form of medical care. She conceded though sitting back down watching the royal with a guarded look.

The Triforce glowed brightly on Zelda's hand, and the royal again placed it on the hunter's forehead. Zelda could feel how tense the hunter was. Her brow was furrowed under Zelda's hand, mistrusting the unseen force that was magic.

"Relax, it's not going to hurt." Zelda's magic reached out tentatively at first sensing the hunter's tension. Healing magic was different from other forms of magic. Unlike the ability to create a ball of fire or deflect damage, healing required one to connect to the person they were healing on some level.

The hunter's hand signed a quick sorry before she attempted to relax. The royal gave her a gentle smile refocusing on lowering the hunter's fever. Zelda felt her magic wrap itself around the hunter, slowly it began to lower her temperature. Her brows furrowed though, through her magic she could sense other untreated injuries the hunter stayed silent about. She tried to focus and heal the wounds, but without making contact with them she couldn't do anything.

At the very least Samus seemed to relax, it must felt great to have the fever lowered. Samus had leaned back a little on the sofa her eyes closed. By the time Zelda removed her hand the hunter was completely slumped her breathing even.

"Samus?" Zelda said softly not wanting to wake her if she had truly dozed off. Samus didn't respond, it seemed the exhaustion she clearly was suffering from finally caught up to her. It was strange seeing Samus so unguarded, her face usually so serious was relaxed now. Blonde hair fell over her eyes with her head slumped over in sleep. Without thinking Zelda fixed the unruly blonde locks so they didn't hang in the hunter's face. Samus twitched and Zelda pulled back realizing what she did.

Samus opened her eyes blearily, but Zelda could tell the hunter might as well still be asleep. She looked at the royal confusion evident in her tired gaze. Zelda gently touched her shoulder keeping her from getting up.

"Go back to sleep, everything's fine, sleep." Zelda's words soothed the tired hunter, and her eyes closed again. Her breathing evened out, the hunter falling back into blissful sleep. The Queen smiled happy Samus didn't wake, she definitely needed a rest. It was worrying that they've only been separated for a few months, and this is the state Samus returns in. Sure Zelda was here to care for her now, but what did Samus do when she wasn't being dragged into Hyrule.

If the wounds Zelda sensed were any indication, probably nothing. Eyebrow twitching Zelda felt a pang of anger at the hunter for her disregard for herself. Usually Zelda wasn't one to talk about taking care of oneself since most of the staff called her a workaholic. However, Zelda's work wasn't life threatening. The worst that was going to happen to her was a few missed nights of sleep, or at worst a paper cut. What other manner of monsters did Samus face Zelda had to wonder, though not for long. If she knew, Zelda was sure she would never want the hunter to leave Hyrule.

Shaking from her thoughts Zelda looked to the window, the sun was still slowly dipping towards the horizon. Glancing at the hunter, it would be a while before Samus would wake. Briefly Zelda thought to try and move the hunter to lay on the sofa, but if the smallest touch made her stir. Then trying to move her would certainly wake her. She definitely would have a crick in her neck when she woke, but at least the hunter would be a little rested.

Moving back to her desk Zelda sat down glancing at the sleeping hunter. She smiled softly, then grabbed her quill to finish up a few things before Samus awoke. The study was quiet the only sound was the scratching of Zelda's quill and the hunter soft breathing.

The quiet atmosphere was broken though when Zelda heard Samus take a sharp intake of breath. The Queen looked over to see Samus' face contorted in what looked like pain. Quickly Zelda rounded her desk and approached the sleeping hunter.

Samus was breathing quickly now, shuddering in her sleep. The hunter was mumbling to, though Zelda couldn't make out what the words were. A nightmare, Zelda realized quickly she placed a hand on Samus' shoulder shaking her gently.

"Samus, wake up." Zelda called softly, the hunter didn't wake though. She twitched brow still furrowed, Zelda heard her mumble again. Then the hunter jerked and Zelda had to jump away to avoid a metal fist.

Samus sprung up, Zelda taking a few steps back raising her hands in passive manner. The hunter's arm cannon hand materialized, beginning to charge as soon as it took full form. Weapon raised Samus' eyes looked around wildly for some non-existent threat. She was breathing quickly the images that haunted her dreams still present even in wakefulness.

"Samus," Zelda kept her voice even calling the hunter's name. It caused the hunter's gaze to snap to Zelda's, staring at the royal. Yet her gaze seemed so far off as if seeing something entirely different.

Tentatively Zelda reached out to try and get Samus to lower her weapon. The hunter tensed at the movement her brow furrowed her free hand came to her face covering her eyes as if trying to rid herself of the nightmare's images.

"It's not real Samus you're in Hyrule remember. Everything's fine." Zelda took a step forward, pausing to make sure the movement didn't startled the hunter. Samus' breathing was still heavy, but she was taking deep slow breaths clearly trying to calm herself.

The arm cannon disappeared Samus' arm lowering. Zelda crossed the distance separating them, and wrapped her arms around the hunter holding her close. She tensed, slowly though the hunter became aware of where she really was.

Zelda didn't let go until she heard Samus' breathing settle, and the hunter's body relax. When she finally did loosen her hold, Zelda only let go of Samus enough that she could look up at her face.

"Better?" Samus nodded, her calm in control demeanor slowly returning.

"Good, do want to talk about it?" Zelda knew the answer even before Samus shook her head. She gave her a gentle smile, Samus had already shared much with the royal tonight. Besides Zelda knew better than anyone about horrid dreams, her prophetic nightmares often being the cause of the royal's lack of sleep. Samus would talk about it when she was ready to.

"Let's get some dinner then shall we? Today has been a long day." Samus gave a nod in agreement grabbing her helmet before following the royal out of the study.

Dinner was a much more pleasant affair. Zelda had her maids bring them food to a small table set out in the garden she used to visit as a child. There was still just enough sun left to illuminate the garden, but there were candles hanging on each wall surrounding the small garden providing more light for the two. Zelda always prefered dining out here rather than the actual dining room the castle held, it was far too empty for just one person to eat there.

It was slightly humorous watching the hunter be served by her staff. Samus clearly wasn't used to such treatment, and awkwardly thanked the maid that brought them their food.

When Samus took her helmet off again to eat Zelda inwardly laughed at the hunter. Samus looked close to drooling over the food before her. She ate at an even pace, but it was clearly forced so she wouldn't appear a slob for wolfing down the food.

Zelda ate her food while telling Samus about what has happened since they separated. Samus seemed to have returned to mostly her normal self. Listening to Zelda's words injecting her opinion when she believed it was warranted, but mostly staying silent. Silence was never awkward with the hunter she seemed to know the perfect time to add to the conversation.

"I have been getting a quite a few complaints about the guard though. A lot of crime is going unpunished because the guard is too laxed." Samus perked up when Zelda mentioned her guard. She took a gulp of water before speaking.

" _They're too laxed?_ " Zelda nodded, poking at her food her brow furrowed in thought.

"Yes, since we're in peacetime we have a lot of guard that...aren't very enthusiastic about their job. It's a well paying respected job that many don't take very seriously because there is no threat to be worried about." Link has complained to Zelda many times about how incompetent her soldiers were, and though Zelda hated to admit it he was right. However Zelda was no General, not even really a warrior she had no experience on how to approach the problem.

"I thought monsters were common in your world?" Samus had a thoughtful look on her face as she spoke.

"They only come out at night, and the walls around town keep out most threats." Zelda paused for a moment then seemed to realize she was going on about the problems of the state.

"Apologies, I didn't mean to bore you with such things. The trivial problems of Hyrule are not yours." Samus didn't seemed bothered she gave Zelda a small smile.

"I don't mind, you sounds like you should listen to your own advice though." The hunter grinned lightly though her tone was serious. Zelda paused considering her words. The Queen didn't really have anyone to talk to about any problems she had. Link didn't understand the way things went in the castle. His solutions would be to tell off a snarky lord who was talking back. While as Queen, Zelda had to remain poised calm above the petty ways of those below her. It seemed by Samus' words she was offering to listen to any problems the Queen had. The kind gesture made Zelda smile.

"Another time, I'd say you've been through enough today. You'll have plenty of time to listen to me complain later." Zelda laughed feeling slightly giddy thinking that Samus was going to be at the castle for a while.

The two finished their meals exchanging lighthearted conversations. Unknown to them the castle staff were taking peeks at the garden trying to catch a glimpse at the mysterious warrior that had somehow managed to get the Queen to drop everything to spend time with.

"I'm telling you she has to be a knight of some kind!" The maid rolled her eyes listening to the stable boy's declaration. Ignoring it she shifted the dish in her hands continuing to wash it.

"Don't you have a job to do Weston? We shouldn't be gossiping about her majesty's guest." The stable boy crossed his arms flicking his hair out of his face. It has been three days since the mysterious stranger showed up with Sir Link to the castle. To the entire castle staff's shock, the Queen who was normally a workaholic took time out of each day and spent much of it in the warrior's company. She still got what was needed done of course, but such a change threw the whole castle for a loop.

"Please Clara, the whole castle is trying to figure out what's up. A lot of the guard want to take a shot at sparing with her. See if that armor is just for show." The maid frowned something told her it wasn't. Though young she has worked at the castle for most of her life, and never has she seen any knight wear armor like her majesty's guest.

"You're going to get us both in trouble if you don't get to your duties." Weston scoffed leaning against the counter.

"It's too early, I'd just end up spooking the horses." This prompted a glare from Clara which was ignored.

"Then what are you doing up? Even her majesty won't be getting up for at least another hour or two." The Queen rose with the sun and it was still a good hour before the sun came up.

"Because I….Holy goddess!" Weston jumped cursing silently before whipping around to face the counter. Clara took a quick glance before she too jumped inching closer to the sink as if it would make her less noticeable.

Queen Zelda's guest had entered the kitchen that glowing visor gave the warrior a frightening appearance in the dim lighting of the castle. Their metal boots clicked against the stone floor as they moved.

Either they didn't notice the maid and stablehand or didn't acknowledge them. The warrior walked over to the pantry looking inside before going about looking inside the cabinets that lined the kitchen walls. It seemed like she was looking for something. Clara heard a metal ting, and saw the warrior pulling a tea kettle out of the cabinet. Tea? Clara tried her best to keep her eyes on her work, but she was curious. What would the metal covered warrior be making tea for?

They found the boxes of tea leaves in the cabinet, but then they paused looking at the various boxes as if they didn't know what to pick. That was odd most people weren't so indecisive when it came to something so simple as tea.

Then it clicked in the maid's mind the tea wasn't for the metal clad warrior. Looking out the nearest window the sky was beginning to brighten as the sun climbed over the horizon. Without even thinking Clara blurted out the answer the warrior was wondering.

"Her majesty prefers green tea." She immediately clapped a hand over her mouth. She didn't know the rank of this warrior for all she knew they could be a high ranking lord. If so, it wasn't her place to nose into their business.

The warrior didn't get angry, she heard a box being pulled from the cabinet. Then another ting of metal from the kettle being moved. Feeling bold Clara turned around and found herself face to face with the metal clad warrior.

The maid jumped, the warrior towered over her. Even Weston had to crane his neck to look up at them. They still didn't seem angry though, in fact they seemed relaxed as if they were trying to appear non-threatening.

"Thank you," a low alto voice came from the helmet. Without another word the warrior turned and left to another part of the kitchen, no doubt to find a stove and water. Heart beating faster than a hummingbird the maid let out a breath she didn't know she been holding. Both maid and stable hand stood there for a minute surprise at what had just happened. While Weston left grinning excited to spread the gossip about the intimidating warrior making tea for the Queen. Clara continued with her work leaving the metal warrior alone, having a feeling she would hear all about them with time.

Zelda covered her mouth to stifle a yawn. It was early morning and the Queen had just finished getting ready for the day. The castle was quiet, as most of the staff had yet to awaken to start the day. The Queen prefered this time, most of her days were always a rush to get everything she needed done. The mornings however were always calm, leaving Zelda to walk to her study leisurely.

Opening the door Zelda gave the fireplace a curious look. A fire was already burning happily, odd since Zelda always managed to wake before most of the staff. Normally Zelda would light the fire herself, but the castle was getting colder each day with winter approaching. So the royal didn't question it, assuming one of the early rising maids decided to warm the study for her.

Getting to her desk Zelda found a cup of tea waiting for her sitting by her papers. Sitting down Zelda's eyebrow rose, steam still rose from the cup so it was made recently. Strange because Zelda didn't hear anybody in the kitchen aside from a maid or two washing dishes.

Not questioning it Zelda happily drank the warm beverage, feeling more alert Zelda looked to her papers. Leafing through them the Queen pulled out a letter the guard captain had given to her late yesterday to read at her leisure.

The Queen grumbled as she remembered the words would be easier read with her glasses. Years of having her nose in books was catching up to her, and Impa had warned her as a child she would have trouble reading in the future. Zelda could see fine at a distance, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to read without the glasses. It had been a miracle she had managed in Subspace without them. Pulling a pair of reading glasses out of her desk drawer Zelda perched the speckles on her face unfolding the letter.

Humming in contentment the Queen skimmed the message while sipping her tea. The guard captain was requesting that Zelda's guest put on a demonstration of their fighting prowess to the castle guards. Zelda grinned at the captain's wording of Samus. The castle was quite confused on who or what Samus was.

Most of the castle was assuming she was a knight of some kind due to the armor. Which if Zelda thought about it they weren't wrong. In some sense Samus was a knight. She protected her world from evil, much like a knight in Hyrule would do.

Speaking of Samus, the hunter was slowly relaxing and getting used to being at the castle. Zelda didn't have as much time as she would like to be with the hunter, so Samus had time to do as she pleased. From what Zelda heard from her staff the hunter didn't disturbed anyone, and was the model guest. Which was greatly welcomed by the staff, as most lords were not the best house guests.

She heard that Samus had taken paper, ink, and a few quills from the storage room, then disappeared from the castle grounds a few time. Zelda wasn't too concerned. Samus could take care of herself after all. The Queen was curious what she was up to on these trips she took outside the castle though.

Putting the paper down, Zelda noted that she would have to ask if Samus was willing to show the castle guards what she could do. It would be beneficial to the guards, the Queen surmised. Zelda wasn't blind to the castle gossip, she knew many were eager to test their skills against a strong looking opponent. Besides it would give the hunter something to do. Though from the time Zelda was spending with the hunter the inactivity seemed to be doing her some good.

Samus was taking off her helmet more often without Zelda prompting her, though Zelda has still yet to see Samus completely take the armor off. The Queen was beginning to wonder if the armor even came completely off. While curious as to why Samus never took the armor off in the presence of others, she didn't press the issue.

After the first few days the hunter already appeared less gaunt from having regular meals with Zelda. The dark shadows under her eyes were fading, and Samus appeared less tense each day.

It made Zelda happy knowing some good was coming from Samus being ripped from her world. After hearing what had happened to the hunter she was glad that portal appeared when it did. Who knows what would have become of Samus had she continued on as she had.

Zelda knew Samus would have lived of course, but she shuddered to think the state she'd be in by the time the tournament came by.

Zelda got through a few more letters before a light knock at the door captured her attention.

"Enter," the door clicked open and in walked the hunter herself. In Samus' hand was a plate of steaming hot food clearly just made. Samus walked over to the desk handing the plate to Zelda. It was becoming a routine of theirs every morning. Zelda would wake head to her study to begin working. Soon after, Samus would come with either breakfast for both of them or just the Queen if the hunter had chosen to already eat.

"Good morning, thank you." Zelda took the offered food moving aside her papers to make room for the plate. Samus nodded sitting down in the chair across from Zelda's desk.

"Anything planned for the day?" The hunter shrugged as usual, not having a concrete plan of her actions for the day. With a small hiss, Samus' helmet was removed, the hunter sitting it down on her lap.

"If you have nothing else, my guard captain wanted to know if you would show the guard a demonstration of your fighting skills." Samus quirked an eyebrow looking thoughtful.

"Nothing serious, he probably just wants to have a few guards spare against you. I'm sure you're far out of their league, but it's something to consider if you find yourself bored." To Zelda surprise after thinking for a moment an almost mischievous smile appeared on Samus' face. She nodded agreeing to spare with the guards, Zelda blinked not liking the look Samus had adopted.

"Okay I'll tell him you'll do it." Zelda paused for a moment before adding. "Don't cause too much trouble. I'd rather not have to explain to a guard's family that they have several broken bones because someone beat them into a pulp." Samus stood signing a quick don't worry before putting her helmet back on. The hunter left Zelda to her work with the feeling she was going to have a mess to clean up later.

Samus' first impression of the old grizzled man that was the captain of Zelda's guard was that he was probably the only competent fighter here. Other than Zelda herself of course, but the royal was a pacifist by nature so she lacked the drive to be a warrior.

A few hours after having breakfast with Zelda the captain had approached the hunter while she was relaxing in the garden. With one look Samus could tell the older man's intent.

He wanted Samus to beat the crap out of the guards to show them how out of touch they were. It was something Samus found herself more than happy to do. After hearing Zelda mention she was having issues with the soldiers, Samus had spent some time thinking of a way to help the Queen. Zelda was letting Samus stay at the castle after all. It was the least the hunter could do.

The captain had lead Samus to the barracks located in the back of the castle. A few small buildings were behind the castle where the guards slept, and there was a sizable staging area where guards could practice.

Several guards were waiting for the captain's return, lined up in standard military fashion. Samus gave them credit for at least appearing like respectable soldiers. The hunter had her arm cannon dematerialized. She definitely wouldn't need it for this.

Behind the guards lined up though was a familiar face. Sitting on top a wooden crate Link waved at the hunter a smirk on his face. He hopped off the crate approaching the captain who sighed at the hero's appearance.

"Sir Link," he didn't even finish before Link cut him off.

"Ya, ya I know I'm not supposed to be here in the barracks. Believe it or not captain I'm here on official business delivering a shipment on the behalf of Lon Lon Ranch." Link gave Samus a grin before looking back to the captain. Samus titled her helmet wondering what the hero was up to.

"If you're on a delivery Sir Link why are you here, instead of with your cargo?" The hero's grinned widened motioning to the soldiers lined up.

"I heard Samus was going to beat some guys into the ground, so I came to watch." He finished talking with a laugh, a few of the guards behind him startled at the hero's blunt statement. Some gave the hunter a worried look, wondering if what Link said was true.

"Well," the captain sighed turning to the guards lined up. "As Sir Link so eloquently put it, you will be sparing with Sir Aran." Samus quirked an unseen eyebrow at that. She has been called many things, but Samus could say she's never been called Sir. The hunter briefly wondered if Zelda told her people she was a knight. It didn't really bother Samus, as it was probably easier for Zelda to just tell people Samus was knight rather than an intergalactic bounty hunter from a different dimension.

The captain's statement was met by mix reactions from the guard. Some seemed worried, others stayed mostly expressionless, and a few of the more cocky ones looked excited at the idea.

"Sir Aran," the captain motioned to the circle drawn into the ground designating it as the sparing area. The hunter walked over crossing her arms waiting for the first guard to step forward. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Link pushing a crate forward jumping on it and taking a seat, ready to watch the show.

"Everyone is going, so we're just going down the line. River! You're up first!" The guard jumped at the captain's command. Uncertainly he walked into the circle, Samus observed him silently. He took a fighting stance fists raised, Samus didn't move a muscle her arms still crossed over her chest. The guard was uncertain of himself that much was clear, but his stance seemed solid.

"Fight!" River ran forward fist raised, he swung and Samus stepped out of the way spinning around ending up behind the guard. The hunter kept her arms crossed not taking the offensive yet. She was observing watching every movement the guard made. Analysing every weakness, every strength as the guard attempted again and again to hit the hunter. This guard was a lanky boy barely out of his teenaged years. Messy hair stuck out of his helmet, and Samus could see uncertainty in his gaze.

Each time River tired to get a hit in Samus dodged with ease. This went on until Samus was satisfied she understood the guard's way of fighting. Finally when River was panting close to giving up when he swung his arm outstretched. Samus grabbed his wrist and twisted, not enough to break it, but the guard yelped in pain. He struggled for a moment trying to break out of the hunter's iron grip, but to no avail.

Samus let go when River tried to jerk away, he fell to ground with a grunt. He stayed there for a moment rubbing the back of his head. He looked up when Samus held out a hand to help him back up.

The captain gave an approving look as River hurried back into line having been defeated. Link groaned though complaining he wanted to see Samus smash someone into the ground.

After two more fights with Samus merely dodging until she decided it was time to end the fight. The next guard Link got his wish.

The fourth guard had walked confidently into the circle, his chest puffed out taking a fighting stance. Samus had taken note of the guard already, he had scoffed at the two who were easily defeated. Unlike River who had still yet to grown out of his scrawny teenage body, this young man was muscular, with a cocky grin on his face. Samus knew the look, she had been in the military after all. It was the look all new soldiers had before they saw any real combat. Samus had no doubt this man was probably the best fighter in this group, but he was about to get a painful lesson on how there was always someone stronger than you.

He charged at Samus trying to overwell the hunter, so she would flaunter in her dodging. Like the others Samus simply avoided the attacks easily. The hunter could have let him hit her, but that would just end with him breaking his hand on Samus armor. Besides despite the heavy armor the hunter was still able to move quickly enough to move out of the way. The inexperienced guards were clearly not expecting her to be able to move with such heavy looking armor.

"Come on hold still," The guard mumbled angrily, quietly enough that the captain wouldn't hear him. It took less time for Samus to access this man's skill, despite his cocky demeanor she wasn't impressed. He was simply strong, and an untrained fighter would be overwhelmed by it.

He didn't even see it coming when Samus grabbed his arm jerking him around she kicked him squarely in the back sending him face planting into the ground.

"Goddess fuc…"

"Back in line! You can grumble there!" The captain barked, the guard glared but followed the command. Link laughed which only caused the guard to become even more angry. A few of the others snickered as well, but were silenced by the captain.

Samus made short work of the rest of the guards. It wasn't long before each guard in line was covered in dirt from being tossed to the ground by the hunter. Link chuckling and laughing at the guards the entire time.

When the last guard was defeated and Link threw his head back laughing finding the guards so thoroughly beat hilarious. The cocky guard from earlier leaned over quietly whispering to the guard next to him.

"He wouldn't be laughing if it was him in the ring." Unfortunately Samus wasn't the only one to hear the comment. Link jumped from the crate he sat on striding into the circle.

"Oh? I wouldn't huh? What you say metalhead? Ready for a real fight?" It was still strange to have Link acting so friendly towards her, but something told the hunter to go along with whatever he was up to. She nodded.

Link grinned exiting the circle for a moment to grab a sword and a shield that were hanging on a nearby weapon rank. He reentered the circle spinning the sword once appearing excited. A stark contrast to the last time Samus fought the hero.

Since the sword he held wasn't the master sword there was no way it could cause any damage to the hunter, so Samus kept her arm cannon dematerialized so the fight would be fair.

"Ready when you are metalhead!" The hunter nodded, and Link grinned running at her sword raised. Sweeping wide with the blade Samus jumped back avoiding the sword. This was different from the last time she fought the green clad hero. Last time Link had been so determined to defeat her, as if she had been a villain that needed slain.

Now he was grinning as he swung his blade at her. He wasn't even swinging the sword that hard. It was like he wasn't trying to cause any real damage. Samus soon found herself smiling under her helmet. She never fought for the fun of it, but clearly that was Link's goal with this.

When Samus dodged another attack without countering attacking Link called out.

"Come one metalhead! You know I'm not like these guys!" Link swung his sword down in a horizontal strike, Samus blocked it with her arm. With his sword still stuck on the hunter's arm Link leaned in whispering.

"Hey wanna' scare the pants off these guards?" The hunter glanced at the guards, they all were watching the fight in amazement of the two fighters' skills. They separated exchanging a couple more blows before Link was able to whisper to the hunter again.

"I want you to catch my sword next blow and snap it in half." Samus nodded, the heroes separated Link slashed his sword across the hunter's chest. As planned though Samus caught the blade mid-swing. If it were the master sword the blade would have cut right through her hand, armor or not.

It just an ordinary sword though, Samus gripped the blade tightly the sound of the metal bending resonated in the air. Using her enhanced strength the blade slowly started bending, until not being able to handle the stress anymore it snapped. Link stumbled backwards staring at broken sword that was now nothing more than the handle and half a blade. Staring at the sword for another second Link grinned laughing tossing the pommel aside.

The guards all jumped staring at the broken sword laying on the ground. They went from gazing at the sword to the hunter who just snapped a metal sword with their bare hand. Even the guard captain's eyes were wide. The strongest fighter they'd ever seen was Link, but even the hero didn't have such brute strength.

With a grin Link tossed the shield he borrowed into the arms of one of the stunned guards.

"Well that was fun, good to see you're not letting yourself get soft metalhead." Link playfully punched Samus' arm continuing to grin. Samus titled her helmet looking at the hero.

"Guess that's enough fun for now though, I gotta get back to the ranch before Malon thinks I fell asleep on the job. Come on metalhead walk with me?" Link gestured for Samus to walk with him Samus nodded. Before leaving the captain thanked the hunter and hero for their help, looking rather pleased at the shocked and amazed looks of his guards.

Samus walked next to Link as they went through the empty halls of the castle towards the exit.

"Don't know how Zelda can live here, it's so empty. Guess I'm just used to the open air of the forest." Samus didn't say anything, instead listening slightly surprised how causal Link was being with her.

"We sure showed those guards what's up though! Man the look on their faces when you broke that sword. Priceless!" Link laughed crossing his arms behind his head for a moment before returning them to his sides. The hunter had to admit it was slightly humorous, the guards were clearly inexperienced and needed to see how strong some people out there were.

Link stopped walking for a moment, the hunter followed suite looking at the hero curiously. Scratching the back of his head Link appeared uncertain for a second before speaking.

"Listen Aran, I was kind of an asshole to you in the past, and I'm sorry. I let the competition get to me, and I admit you kind of freaked me out with how strong you are." Samus stayed silent, letting Link continue.

"So if you want to start over, I'd like a chance to not be an asshole. Maybe be friends, I mean any friend of Zelda's is one of mine….Ugh, I suck at this apologising stuff! What I'm trying to say is sorry for being an asshole, wanna be friends?" Link held out his hand looking ruffled but determined.

Samus took it without hesitation, why she did the hunter didn't know, but the thought of having a friend in the hero left a pleasant feeling in the hunter.

"Whew! Now that awkwardness is done with come on let me show you around Castle Town since Miss this kingdom is my life probably hasn't had the time to show you." Link gave Samus another playful punch before motioning her to follow him. Having no other plans the hunter followed him, having the feeling it would be interesting hanging around the hero.

"We definitely should get a drink I know a place run by a Goron…" Link continued on talking about things they could do in the town, Samus staying silent letting him ramble on. It was definitely going to be interesting day.

"That was awesome! Remind me never to play poker against you." The hero exclaimed, shoving the several rupees the two heroes won in his pocket. In Link's vain attempts to get Samus to take off her helmet and have a drink with him. The two had somehow been pulled into a card game with a couple of hylians at a bar.

A game their opponents were hard pressed to win when Samus was like a brick wall. There was no way to tell if the hunter was bluffing, and that left the two heroes leaving the bar with a couple hundred rupees.

The sun had long since retired from the sky. The moon illuminating the small town from above as the two heroes walked through the empty streets.

"Next time you have to have a drink! I know Zelda has seen you without your helmet. It's only fair I get to see you too." The hunter shook her head, an unseen smile on her lips. At first she merely kept her helmet on because she always did. When Link humorously kept trying to get the hunter to relax she kept it on to get a rise out of the hero. It was fun, strange as it was for Samus to think that. Fun was still a foreign concept to the hunter, growing up training with the Chozo there was no time for such nonsense.

"Urgh fine! But one of these days you're not going to have that suit, and how will I know it's you. Any metal suit wearing crazy could pass off as you." Samus tilted her head, as if anyone could have power armor like hers. Link seemed to sense the look the hunter was giving him and he laughed.

"Zelda's right you are hard to argue with. I better head back home, it was fun today let's do it again sometime metalhead." The hero bade Samus goodbye heading back to the ranch he lived at. Samus herself began walking back to the castle.

Castle Town certainly rose with the sun, this late at night the town was empty. Everyone having gone to bed, and every business closed its doors except for a bar and an inn. It was peaceful, crickets were chirping, fireflies fluttered in the air around Samus, attracted to the light that came from the hunter's visor.

It had been quite a while since Samus visited such a peaceful world. Ever since the destruction of Zebes Samus had been hunting down the last of the pirate forces that escaped the planet destruction. Before the events of the B.S.L. station of course, but Samus prefered not to think of that now.

Walking up the path to the castle something caught the hunter's eye. Off the main path a soft light brought Samus' gaze to a small tunnel in the hillside. The hunter approached the hole, she saw something bright disappear down the tunnel. Never one to not investigate the unknown Samus went into her morph ball rolling through the tunnel.

It wasn't long, and soon Samus found it opening up to larger chamber. Out of her morph ball the hunter scanned the area. It was a small cave of seemingly nothing of interest except for one thing.

A fountain, it glowed with crystal clear water at the center of the chamber. Samus glanced around, there was no one here. Walking over to the fountain Samus looked at the water below. Nothing of interest there, it was just clear water.

Scans coming up with nothing, the hunter leaned down touching the water's surface. It rippled, then at the fountain's center there was a small flash.

Out of the water a small ball of light flew from the fountain. It wasn't a ball of light though, Samus saw small fragile wings carrying the small being. The small creature flew over to the hunter cautiously. Instinctively Samus scanned the creature to see if it was a threat. Scans came up with nothing though, and the small being flew a little closer.

It jumped back when Samus shifted to stand making a tiny gasp. Trying to appear non-threatening Samus held out her hand.

"I won't hurt you," Samus calmly spoke, inwardly thinking it was nice to voice her intentions instead of having to wait until one decided she wasn't a threat. The creature calmed at her words fluttering back to the hunter.

Samus felt the small creature settle on the palm of her hand. Though she couldn't see it through the light that illuminated it, she felt the creature's gaze on her.

"You're hurt," a tiny feminine voice spoke with confidence. Samus' eyebrow rose, the hunter wasn't hurt she still had a few fractures and a bruise or two from her last mission, but otherwise she was fine.

Wings fluttering the small creature flew off of Samus' hand, hovering in front of the hunter's visor. Again Samus scanned the creature. Nothing, her suit couldn't make heads or tails of it. A light giggle filtered through the air.

"Logic, always logic isn't it? Logic cuts through the darkness, makes sense of the world. Loss seems insignificant when the head says it is just one life among billions." Samus tilted her head, wondering what the small being was talking about. Its words struck a cord though, it was like the creature knew of Samus' past and all the people she had lost.

Before Samus could even think how to form the words of the questions she wanted to ask the creature fluttered in the air moving away from the hunter. It flew back to the center of the fountain giggling softly.

"You are hurt, but healing. Don't let happiness slip away." With a flash the creature disappeared only a small ripple in the water gave any sign that there had been something there. Eyebrows furrowed Samus reached into the fountain again, nothing just water.

Rubbing the back of her helmet, Samus blinked making sure she wasn't dreaming or something. Shaking her head Samus turned heading out of the chamber, and back onto the path to Hyrule Castle.

She would have to ask Zelda what the creature was, she would no doubt know. Thinking of the creature's words caused Samus to falter in her walk. It told her to not let happiness to slip away, what was it talking about? Was it referring to Samus' own happiness? The hunter was confused, she was content right now. She was staying with her closest friend on a peaceful world, and while circumstances that brought her here were odd. The hunter was glad she was here. Was the creature trying to tell her not to leave Hyrule?

Preposterous, sure the hunter knew she was welcomed to visit if she pleased, but the hunter couldn't stay here. She had a duty to protect the galaxy, although when Samus thought of going back to her world a pang of apprehension came to her. That feeling of exhaustion came back thinking of what horror she would end up facing next.

Samus scolded herself she had to keep fighting. If she stopped protecting her world she would fail to keep the promise made with her Chozo family to keep the galaxy safe. The hunter remembered swearing it to her long passed family after she had recovered her power suit on her zero mission.

The hunter continued walking back to the castle. She had to keep fighting, what else was there for her.

Back in the castle the Queen had already retired to bed, but her sleep was less than restful.

 _A ear piercing screech assaulted Zelda's hearing. It was dark, and the royal was running. Another screech made the royal flinch her feet stumbling. The royal fell to the ground spinning around onto her back to see the monster chasing her._

 _A rush of air blew by, and a large figure landed in front of her. Bathed in shadow Zelda could only make out two yellow eyes glaring down at her. Massive jaws opened letting out another screech._

 _A massive clawed hand slammed down pinning Zelda to the ground between its sharp talons. Zelda knew she should fight, but her mind was racing. She couldn't focus, fear was clouding her mind._

 _Just as the monster was raising its other hand to bring an end to the royal everything faded away, and Zelda found herself lying on a platform made of light. Slowly she sat up looking around, there was nothing just blackness in every direction. A low laugh echoed through the darkness, Zelda snapped up taking a fighting stance._

" _Again you peer into things you do not understand." A thousands voices came from everywhere, Zelda spun around trying to find a source. Only to be meet with more darkness._

" _Don't you tire of the endless cycle your goddesses have imposed upon you. To be reborn a thousands times to defeat an evil that will only return again." Zelda's eyes narrowed, continuing to scan for a source of the voice. The voice was silent waiting for Zelda to answer._

" _If someone threatens my home or friends I will defeat them. No matter how many times evil decides to resurface." Finally the royal answered, after it was clear the voice would only return once she answered._

" _You claim to be a person of peace, yet you speak of fighting. I only want perfection, our goals are the same." Zelda shook her head glaring at the darkness around her._

" _I don't want perfection."_

" _You want peace, peace will come with perfection." Out of the darkness a light came forth. A human shaped figure took shape, their body transparent a blue green hue covering their skin._

" _You will oppose me." The being stated, there was no emotion in its voice. It was just stating a fact. Yet the world around rippled the darkness shifting, closing in surrounding the royal. The only light came from the god-like being._

" _Your foresight makes you an interloper. You cannot remember what the future will bring." The being hovered closer to Zelda, and the royal tried to use her magic to attack it. Only nothing happened no fire came from her hand, and the Zelda's eyes widened upon the realization._

" _You wish to continue in your cycle of death then do so and suffer for it." The being reached out its hand hovering over the royal's head. Zelda screamed, her world going dark._

The castle was rather quiet at night, Samus noted. During the day nobles and servants bustled about through the halls. At night though the long halls of the castle were empty, nothing but an occasional mouse scurrying across the floor could be seen.

Sleep never came easy to Samus, so the hunter had purposely not returned to the guest room. She was so used to not sleeping that it would take awhile for her to relax enough to fall asleep, even then it was often restless.

Samus passed by Zelda's study just to be sure the royal had went to bed herself. The hunter had already come across the royal asleep at her desk one night. Since then Samus checked the study at night to make sure the Queen wasn't over doing it.

Zelda wasn't there tonight, so the Queen must already be sleeping. Closing the study door softly Samus turned continuing to patrol the halls. It calmed the hunter's nerves to check the empty castle for threats. Samus wasn't used to being somewhere where death didn't wait around every corner.

It was extremely late by the time Samus decided to at least returned to the guest room. On her way there hurried footsteps echoed through the hall. A servant came rushing down the hall running straight into the hunter.

Samus quickly caught the flustered servant's wrist stopping them from stumbling back and falling. She let go and the servant stuttered an apology, wringing their hands.

"What's wrong?" The young servant jumped not expecting the silent warrior to speak. Samus waited patiently for the servant to gather themselves and speak. They seemed completely on edge, worry clear on their face.

"Her majesty is in the mists of a prophetic dream. I cannot wake her, I was going to find one of the older maids. I heard her crying out I wasn't sure what else to do." The servants words were rushed, they fidgeted wanting to hurry off to find some help.

"I'll wake her, go relax." The hunter commanded, her tone leaving no arguments. Not that there were any, the servant nodded rushing off. Samus quickly made her way to the royal's room. The hunter was about to open the door she knew to be Zelda's when she paused.

Should she really intrude upon Zelda's space like this? Perhaps the servant had the right idea, she should let one of Zelda's maid tend to her. Samus didn't like the idea of invading the royal's personal space.

A sharp cry echoed from inside the room, and Samus' decision was made. Samus shut the door behind her as another smaller cry came from the room. The hunter would have expected a larger room with Zelda being Queen, but the room small. A dresser with an intricate mirror was on the left wall, a door leading to a bathroom next to it. Samus saw Zelda bed against the far wall, and the hunter immediately rushed over.

Zelda was thrashing around in her sleep whimpering. The hunter reached out to touch her shoulder to try and wake her, but Zelda jerked away.

"No, no more." Zelda curled away from the hunter's hand continuing to mutter in her sleep. Samus noticed the triforce glowing brightly on Zelda's hand, the royal let out another cry jerking the royal's hands clutched her head. She muttered something about twilight and a something that sounded like the great sea.

Samus had to wake her, the hunter's visor told her that Zelda's pulse and heart rate were far too rapid for a normal nightmare. Gently Samus took Zelda's hands holding them firmly. The royal writhed trying to get away.

"Zelda," Samus called, Zelda only continued to struggle in a vain attempt to break away from the hunter's grasp. Samus frowned, how did Zelda so easily wake her from her nightmare before.

This wasn't working Zelda was going to hurt herself trying to break free from her. Letting go Samus watched to royal jerked away from her continuing to whimper and mutter in sleep.

"Zelda, wake up." This time Samus gently took the royal in her arms holding her close. At first Zelda struggled trying to escape what her nightmare corrupted mind probably thought was some assailant trying to hurt her. Eventually her struggles ceased, and she let out a small whimper.

The hunter let out an internal sigh of relief when the royal calm slightly. Zelda hands tried to take hold of the hunter's armor, finding no purchase to clutch. The royal's arms slipped around Samus' waist. Samus scanned the royal to see her heart rate returning to an acceptable rate.

The nightmare ending the hunter assumed she should leave before the royal actually woke. Samus tried to lay her back down on the bed, but Zelda clutched the hunter tightly refusing to let go.

Samus knew she shouldn't stay, but Zelda looked so small and delicate. It seemed wrong to leave the royal when just a minute ago she was wrapped up in some horrid dream's game. Samus of all people knew what kind of terrors could haunt people while they slept.

Zelda looked different in sleep, wearing a simple nightgown it was a stark contrast to the normally beautiful dresses she wore. The royal's hair was down, falling down her back in gentle waves. She seemed to be resting peacefully now the nightmare gone from her subconscious.

Samus wasn't sure how the royal could be comfortable curled up against Samus' metal armor, but Zelda was sleeping without a care. Since it seemed she was to Zelda's teddy bear until the royal decided to let go, the hunter concentrated. Her suit glowed softly, and soon it dematerialized as if it was never truly there.

Not many knew Samus' suit was literally a part of her, biomechanical would be what a scientist would dub it. Advance technology made by the chozo the suit stayed if Samus willed it to, though this took so much concentration and discipline. That even if someone had a power suit ingrained within them. They wouldn't have the knowledge or skill to use it.

When the suit was deactivated the only thing left behind were chozo symbols emblazoned on Samus' hands and back. Zelda murmured something, but didn't wake from the change. The least Samus could do was make the royal more comfortable, and she doubted Zelda would rest pleasantly for long against Samus' suit.

Without her suit Samus was wearing just a simple sleeveless top and shorts, it would be too cumbersome to wear anything more with the power suit over it. Adjusting Zelda in her arms Samus leaned back against the headboard continuing to let the royal cling to her.

All this seemed so surreal, laying in bed with Zelda. The royal sleeping peacefully curled up against the hunter. Samus knew she could easily get out of the royal's grasp if she wanted to, or she could simply shout and wake her. It seemed like a crime to even think such thoughts though.

Slowly Samus' eyes slide closed, the sound of Zelda's even breaths lulling her to sleep. In the back of her mind Samus thought she should stay awake, so when Zelda's hold on her loosen she could quietly leave. Samus had never felt so at peace before though, she was fast asleep before the thought could ever return.

The next morning the hunter woke before Zelda, and quietly slipped away before the royal stirred.

 _ **A.N. This chapter can also be called the hug it out chapter, so much fluff before Brawl decides to come in and wreck everything!XD This chapter though, this freaking chapter guys despite being a blast to write has been the bane of my existence. When I originally planned out this chapter I could have written a whole separate story with how much I wanted to put in here. I was going to keep the interlude contained into two chapters, but I do have a third chapter that I'm still on the fence on whether to include it or just continue on into Brawl. You'll find out next time with that I remember I promised a rant about my thoughts on the Galactic Federation, and while I would love to rant about them I'm going to hold off for another chapter or two because this note is already long without my rantingsXD.**_

 _ **On a final note before I leave you lovely people I have begun to consider making a sequel to this story. I know I haven't even finished this, but I'm actually on chapter 21 of this story. I'm just really slow at editing…. Anyway I have this story and planned out and finished in my head, so I've begun to think beyond this story, and I just love this little universe I've created so much that I might continue it.**_

 _ **I'm not sure yet we'll see how satisfied I am with the ending, and I'll go from there. With that reviews are loved and I'll see you guys next chapter.**_


	17. Game Paused part 3

_**A.N. What's this an update right after one. Shocking I know rightXD. Anyway I decided to include the third chapter of the interlude. Since I don't feel like renumbering all my chapters I've already written. This one gets the awesome number of chapter 16.5XD. Anyway think of this as a gift from me for being awesome my lovely readers(and also being so patient when I take a month to get a chapter out) enjoy^_^.**_

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Chapter 16.5

"Mew!" The tiny ball of fur cried out staring at the hunter sitting in the grass. Samus looked at the small kitten raising an eyebrow. For a rare occurrence the hunter was not wearing her power armor. After spending about a month in Hyrule she was comfortable leaving it off when she was alone.

Today the hunter was relaxing under a tree far out in Hyrule fields. Samus had finally dug into the clothes Zelda provided in the guest room the hunter stayed in. Now wearing a simple white shirt and tan pants. It was odd wearing such simple clothes, but Samus was glad Zelda knew the hunter wouldn't want something overly fancy like the royal herself wore. The hunter had a cloak too, a deep red that she was sure Zelda purposely chose because it reminded her of the hunter's armor. Thick leather boots covered the hunter's feet, dark gloves kept the chozo marks on her hands hidden from plain sight.

Despite having to wear nothing but her suit for months at a time before, it didn't mean Samus didn't like to go without it once in awhile. The suit was a second skin to her, but she wore it all the time out of necessity. Samus was usually constantly in danger, the only way to feel some sense of security was to keep her suit activated and her senses sharp at all times. Her suit was hardly subtle though, at times it was better to blend in with the crowd.

Adjusting the hood of the cloak Samus stood stretching her stiff muscles. The cat standing before her meowed again staring at Samus. The hunter quirked an eyebrow, everything in Hyrule was so docile. She had yet to come across any hostile wildlife or monsters. Leaning down Samus ran her hand down the cat's back earning a purr of approval from the animal.

Straightening back up the hunter prepared to head out having a mission of sorts for the day, but the kitten mewed looking disheartened at the hunter's departure. The two stared at each other for a moment before Samus sighed. She picked up the small animal grabbing a leather messenger bag she had borrowed from the castle barracks. Opening the bag the kitten happily curled up inside despite the papers and other items within. Before it got too comfortable Samus pulled out a map that was rolled up inside.

Mewing in contentment the kitten kept its head poking out of the bag as Samus slung it over her shoulder. Samus adjusted her cloak so the bag and animal remained out of sight. The cat mewed but settled down rather quickly. Samus smiled softly at the creature before unrolling the map. Normally the hunter could map out an area, and access it from her visor. However her visor only had the basic terrain of Hyrule mapped out for her, not the landmarks like towns and such.

The hunter didn't mind, despite having the most advanced suit in her world. She didn't need it to survive. She had trained for years as a child without her suit, and hardly required it to survive.

Looking around it looked like she was on track there was a gate up ahead leading to Gerudo desert. Yesterday the hunter had overheard Zelda's guard captain tell the royal several soldiers went missing after traveling to Gerudo Valley. The captain told the Queen he was worried there were a few Gerudo that would intend harm to any hylians connected to the royal family.

From what Samus heard the Gerudo were reluctant to let more soldiers come and investigate. This left Zelda with little choice to either force the issue and demand the soldier's disappearance be investigated, or do nothing. Never one to be idle when a problem could be solved Samus decided to look into it herself. Zelda not knowing the hunter was going to of course.

Approaching the Gerudo outpost that separated Gerudo control land from Hyrule Samus spotted two Gerudo women standing watch. They appeared bored, but there was still a level of vigilance in their gaze.

As soon as Samus got close the two snapped their eyes to the hunter. The one held a spear tightening their hold slightly in case the hunter was violent. The other stayed relax holding up a hand telling the hunter to stop.

"Hold there stranger, what business do you have in the Valley?" Amber eyes watched Samus warily, Samus could see her eyes trying to catch a glimpse of Samus' face under her hood. The hunter pulled the cloth down showing the gerudo her face. It would put her at ease, make her less likely to give the hunter any trouble.

"Just traveling," Samus told the gerudo simply. The woman quirked an eyebrow a smirk coming to her lips. Inwardly Samus noted how much easier it was to put people at ease by talking. If she were still unable to speak, the hunter would no doubt put these women on edge with her silence.

"Oh really? Most folks don't just travel to the desert. You're not hylian, so you're either here to die or to sleep with someone." Samus didn't react to the gerudo's blunt statement, she merely put her hood back up covering her face in shadows again. She looked Samus over again, noting the hunter's strong muscular frame and how the hunter had a good few inches on the already tall Gerudo woman. A mischievous smile came to her face and she looked over to her fellow gerudo.

"Let's hope it's for the latter." She called over to her companion who laughed the tension from the hunter's arrival leaving her. Inwardly Samus smirked, they believed Samus to be a simple traveler that they could defeat with ease if she turned violent. Which why wouldn't they? Samus appeared unarmed, although her paralyzer pistol was tucked away under her shirt. Plus Samus could reactivate her suit within seconds if she wanted to, but to them it would seem she would be easily dispatched.

Lucky for them Samus wasn't looking to fight. Let the two guards joke amongst themselves, Samus had no quarrel with them.

"Go ahead stranger you can pass." The woman gestured with her spear ahead allowing the hunter passage. Samus gave a nod to her before continuing on her way.

It was about another half an hour before Samus spotted a bridge up ahead signaling she was entering the valley. There were two more Gerudo standing on the opposite side of the bridge, probably there in case they needed to cut the bridge to bare someone entrance.

They didn't pay Samus much mind as she crossed the bridge. Samus gave them a nod to show she acknowledged them, and it seemed to keep them calm. From what Samus was seeing the Gerudo were a proud people that valued respect greatly. As long as the hunter showed them respect they would return it in kind.

On the other side of the bridge a bustling market of tents and stalls welcomed any planning to make the trip to Gerudo Fortress. Merchants mostly gerudo attempting to sell their wares. Though Samus did note that for a market it seemed rather empty. Even the stalls that were opened didn't have many wares for sale. Her answer for why came in a loud cry from a gerudo woman standing inside a blue tent with wooden table displaying her wares.

The woman was yelling at a short plump hylian man. It was clear from his dress that the man rarely came to the desert. He had fine clothes made of silk on, clearly they were not meant for this environment as sweat coated his brow.

"You damn hylians! We can't afford 30 rupees per pound! We can hardly raise cattle out here ourselves, we'll starve!" The man huffed, crossing his arms he looked up at the Gerudo like one would look at dirt on their shoe.

"That's the price everyone has to pay for beef, take it or leave it." He stated smugly, Samus' eyes narrowed now she could see why Link was constantly bad mouthing the higher ups in Hyrule, minus Zelda of course. If this man was anything to go by, no wonder Zelda usually had a headache after dealing with such arrogance. The woman's face became desperate, and Samus saw her hand reaching behind her back.

Approaching the stand slowly the gerudo spotted Samus. They made eye contact, the hunter shook her head, and she saw the woman come to her senses.

"Fine," she snarled glaring daggers at the man. She pulled out a leather pouch taking out several rupees paying the man who left looking rather smug. She then turned her gaze to Samus giving the hunter a disgruntled look.

"Thanks for the look I was two seconds from stabbing that man in the eye." Samus nodded, glad to have stopped things from escalating to murder.

"Damn hylians keep jacking up the prices of basic food. We can't raise livestock or crops out here how are we supposed to survive?" The gerudo muttered angrily more to herself before giving her full attention to Samus.

"Sorry about that I'm Lufif, best jeweler this side of Hyrule. Ever have a rare stone bring it to me I'll fix you up something nice." Samus noticed the various gems laid out on her table for display.

"Hylians always giving you trouble?" The hunter didn't think this woman had anything to do with the missing soldiers, but any information she could gather would make things go much smoother. The woman huffed crossing her arms.

"I guess I sort of sounded a little racist there huh? Not all the hylians are that bad, Queen Zelda seems to be at least trying to keep the peace. There are still a lot of racist bastards in powerful positions though, they just love to make our lives miserable. They're making sure to keep Gerudos out of Castle Town." Nothing Samus didn't already know, after all Ganon had planned to murder the royal family and take over. There was plenty of bad blood on both sides to make relationships tense between the two races.

"Not to be rude, but are you going to buy something? I sort of have mouths to feed here." Samus glanced at the table, she didn't really need anything Lufif had. However, the woman seemed like the alright sort, so Samus wouldn't leave without giving something in return for the information the woman freely gave.

Looking at the table Samus noticed a pair of earrings sparkling in the desert sun. A blue gem wrapped in gold with a symbol etched on its face caught the hunter's eye.

She pointed to the jewelry and Lufif's face lite up.

"That? Nice choice those sapphires I got off a Zora. They're rare here since the etching on them is for Nayru, but they'd be a perfect gift back in Hyrule. Sixty rupees, or I accept trade." Samus moved her cloak reaching into her bag. Only the movement caused the kitten that had been snoozing within to jump out and onto the table. The cat meowed loudly looking around at its new surroundings. The gerudo's woman's eyes widened then an amazed grin appeared on her face.

"Wow! A cat, never seen one up close before." Lufif scratched the kitten's chin who purred at the attention.

"Oh my kids will love this, I'll trade you for him." After thinking for a second the hunter nodded shaking the gerudo's hand before taking the earrings that Lufif put in a small box. Samus stowed them away in her bag giving Lufif a wave goodbye before continuing on her way.

There was clearly a lot of tension between the two races. It would be hard to pinpoint who could cause the soldier's disappearance. That was if a Gerudo caused their disappearance at all. Samus wasn't called the greatest bounty hunter in galaxy for nothing though. She had tracked people across planets and solar systems before, finding a few missing soldiers would be child's play in comparison.

Moving around the market blending in easily among the people, Samus seemed like just a simple traveler browsing the market's wears. Eventually Samus caught a sign of her prey.

A stall at the far end of the market stood out, or more like the items it sold stood out. Swords lay on the table on display, Samus took the pommel of one of the blades. On the hilt while someone had clearly tried to scratch it out. The mark of the royal family was engraved on the sword.

The owner of the stall wasn't paying Samus any mind. The gerudo woman was skimming the pages of a worn book. The hunter checked the other swords, all had the mark of the royal family.

"Where did you get these?" Samus' voice startled the gerudo she jumped snapping her book shut. She narrowed her eyes at the hunter before reopening her book.

"What's it to you?" Samus turned the sword in her hand tapping the still legible mark with her finger. The woman groaned running a hand through her hair.

"Oh I know why you're here. You're looking for those missing soldiers. Look I had nothing to do with them. I admit I stole these, but I stole them from drunk assholes who had it coming. I'm no murderer, we got enough problems out here to be stirring something like that up." Samus didn't sense any lie coming from the woman, so the hunter spoke voice low and commanding.

"Then who is?" Samus prompted the woman who gave an uncertain look around before getting up and leaning across the table to whisper to the hunter.

"Listen, no gerudo here would murder a hylian. It would be stupid and just make it harder on all of us." She paused her voice getting even lower.

"There was a pack of lizalfos passing through not to long ago, if I were you I'd check there." The hunter nodded, reaching into her bag she sat a few rupees on the table. The woman glanced at them nodded, then took the rupees and returned to her book.

* * *

"Captain, have you seen Samus anywhere?" Zelda asked the man before he left her study. The Captain shook his head frowning.

"I haven't seen her since breakfast your majesty. I can ask around if you'd like?" Zelda smiled but waved off the offer.

"No, that won't be necessary I'm sure she'll turn up before long." The hunter didn't mention what she planned to do today, but it wasn't odd since Samus rarely had a set plan. Zelda was curious as to what the hunter was up to though, it always brought a smile to the royal's face when she saw Samus enjoying herself.

When Samus first came to Hyrule she seemed at a lost of what do with herself. It was clear the hunter never allowed herself down time to simply relax before. It annoyed Zelda she couldn't clear more time to spend with Samus herself, but the alone time Samus had seemed to do the hunter some good.

Getting up Zelda sighed, normally she would have lunch with Samus. Since the hunter was currently missing though, now was as good a time then ever to meet with a few of the nobles. That plan came skidding to a halt though when a familiar voice called out.

"Zelda!" Zelda adopted an exasperated look as she turned to greet Link. The hero merely grinned.

"Hey don't look at me like that! You know when winter rolls around and I can't visit as often you're going to miss me." The monarch's lips upturned into a small smile. True she wouldn't be able to see Link as often, but she wouldn't be completely alone this winter.

"Of course Link, you didn't give anyone too much trouble sneaking in this time did you?" The hero puffed out his chest putting his hands on his hips appearing rather proud.

"You'll be happy to know I was let in today. I was planning on annoying Samus until she agreed to visit the ranch. I wanted to test a theory on whether she could ride a horse or not." Zelda quirked an eyebrow wondering herself if the hunter had done anything like riding a horse. The hunter could run faster than any animal Zelda knew of, so it seemed unlikely Samus ever entertained such an idea. She mentally noted to ask the hunter later.

"Unfortunately I believe Samus is out today. I haven't seen her since we had breakfast." Link quirked an eyebrow at that as Zelda began walking to the throne room. He followed grinning at the royal.

"You let Samus leave your field of vision. I'm shocked, with you being such a worry wart I would have thought you'd keep her imprisoned here forever." Zelda chuckled at the thought of anyone imprisoning Samus. The hunter could blow up half the castle without breaking a sweat.

"Hardly, Samus leaves the castle all the time. She'd probably go stir crazy if she tried to stay here the whole time." She has noticed Samus getting rather antsy as of late. The hunter spared with the guard sometimes, but that was the most action she saw. If one could consider that action, probably to Samus it was more like child's play. Zelda tried to spend as much time as she could with the hunter, but the needs of the country never ended.

"Can't blame her for that, I still don't get how you live here. It's so empty!" Link raised his voice so it echoed in the castle halls. The Queen gave him an amused look, Link grew up in the forest so it was natural life in a castle would be strange to him. The castle was Zelda's home, and while it did seem like a lonely place to be at times. Zelda wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

"It's an acquired taste. At any rate I have things to do Link. If you find Samus…"

"Don't worry I'll send her your way. I'm sure she's only blown up five houses and smashed ten thieves' heads by now." Zelda's eyebrow twitched, the royal sending Link a glare.

"That's not funny…"

* * *

The stench of rotting corpse was stagnant in the air. It was a good thing Samus was familiar with the scent, or else she probably would gag. It didn't take the hunter too long of searching the outskirts of the desert to find sign of the pack of lizalfos. From there it was easy to find the corpses of whatever they attacked. It seemed the lizard people killed for fun as well as food.

The corpses of the hylians were half buried half rotted away in the sand. Give them another day or two, and either the desert would sweep them under the curtain of sand, or some creature would come along to pick the corpses clean making them unrecognizable.

Walking over to the closest body Samus brushed away the sand covering their metal breastplate. The Hyrulian crest was dusty, but still proudly emblazoned on the man's dead body. Checking the bodies over their wounds did seem consistent with the way a lizalfos attacked, though Samus hadn't fought enough of the lizard people to make a final judgement.

A vulture cried out loudly from above angry that Samus had interrupted its meal. Samus paid the bird no mind though checking each body for any clue as to why this happened. Perhaps the soldiers were just unfortunate, and perished at the hands of monsters. It did leave the question why the gerudo were being so shifty about it though.

Something wasn't right, some of the bodies had wounds that seemed to be given by that of a lizalfos. While others had different sets of wounds not consistent with the others. A low familiar crackling sound echoed through the desert.

Samus snapped up looking around sure enough not to far away Samus saw the air crackling just like it did on Tallon IV. Another portal was opening up. Black energy exploded and the world shifted as a tear opened itself in the air.

A light buzzing came from the portal, and out flew a large insect of some kind. The portal snapped close behind it as if it were never there.

Samus drew her paralyzer eyes narrowing. The bug was about the size of a large dog, upon closer inspection Samus recognized the creature. A lumite, a creature from the planet Aether. Samus remembered coming across dozens of the pests in the Agon Wastes during her mission to save the planet in distress.

The lumite seemed to be inspecting its new surrounds, flying around in circles no doubt disoriented from crossing dimensions. Frowning Samus took aim charging up her pistol stunning the creature before several well aim shots ended its life. While the lumite wasn't all too threatening it wouldn't do Hyrule any good to introduce a different life form to the peaceful environment.

Stowing her pistol back away Samus approached the insect to confirm its death before glancing back at the deceased soldiers. Walking over to where the portal had opened Samus approached cautiously. It wouldn't do for her to get dragged through another portal. She might not be so lucky to end up in a place like Hyrule.

Everything seemed normal though, if Samus hadn't seen it. There would be no sign a portal had opened here. This didn't bode well if other portals were opening between Hyrule and her world it could spell trouble for the peaceful land.

The portal must have brought the soldiers demise. There were plenty of horrid creatures in Samus' dimension that could easily destroy the unsuspecting group of hylians. That brought up the question of what was dragged into Hyrule as well.

Going back to the bodies, Samus frowned. The bodies were too decomposed, she wouldn't be able to place the creature that killed them. Without any clues as to what kind of monster attacked them, the hunter was without any leads to track it with.

Samus wasn't about to give up, there was no way she was going to leave a potentially dangerous beast to roam Hyrule. Thinking to herself, if the creature wasn't built for the desert its first objective would be to find water. She recalled spotting a post signaling water was up ahead on her journey out here, that was as good as any place to start. Adjusting her hood to keep the sun from beating down on her face Samus did what she did best, hunt.

It turned out Samus' hunch was correct. After about an hour walk through the desert, she came to a small oasis. Sitting right in the middle of the small pool of water was a creature that certainly didn't belong in Hyrule.

A shegoth, a predator from Tallon IV, luckily just a young one. It sat in the middle of the pond of water, no doubt trying to stay cool. Shegoths hailed from the cold region of Tallon IV, its thick skin was definitely not built for the hot desert environment.

The beast was panting heavily even as it sat in the water. Samus calmly approached the oasis, the ice predator didn't react. The hunter frowned, shegoth were normally easily provoke into attacking. This one was close to death, the hunter could tell. The soldiers went missing about a week ago, so this young beast had spend at least a whole week roasting in the desert sun.

The shegoth growled when Samus stepped into the water, it wasn't deep coming up to just below the hunter's waist. The beast didn't attack though, and Samus knew it wouldn't. The animal was far too tired to attack her. Samus felt a pang of sympathy go out to the creature, but Samus pushed it back remembering this creature killed several innocent lives.

Pulling out her paralyzer again, Samus charged the pistol up. It wouldn't take much to end its life. The shegoth was on death's doorstep already, Samus wouldn't let the beast continue to suffer in the harsh desert environment it wasn't built for.

The shegoth let out a low cry as Samus fired almost a sound of relief as it died. Putting her weapon away Samus went to work moving the creature out of the oasis. The sands of the desert would make short work of the body, so Samus merely got it away from the oasis where it would rot away to nothing.

Heading out of the desert Samus felt fairly satisfied, though it still wasn't clear why all these portals were opening up between her world and Hyrule. At the very least she had an explanation to give Zelda about her missing soldiers.

Looking up the sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon. If she hurried she could probably make it back to Hyrule before tomorrow, it wouldn't do to go missing when she didn't tell Zelda where she went. No doubt the monarch would be worried about Samus absence. Adjusting her hood smiling slightly to herself the hunter began the trip back to Hyrule.

* * *

A gentle melody echoed from the castle garden. Zelda plucked the strings of the harp like she done so many times before. Sitting on a bench in the garden harp in hands, the familiar tune she played so many times calmed the monarch.

During the seven years Ganon controlled Hyrule playing her harp was probably the only comfort Zelda had at the time. The notes came easily to her plucking gently on the instrument.

It was late far later than the hylian normally stayed up, but upon retiring to her room Zelda saw the old harp and felt compelled to play it. After all being so caught up in her work the royal hadn't touched it since taking the throne.

The song paused Zelda stopping mid-note looking up upon hearing boots stepping in the grass. The first thing Zelda realized it was just Samus, and she could relax. The second was Zelda saw the hunter didn't have her armor on. Just wearing a simple shirt and pants, though one of the nicer pieces Zelda had the maids put in the guest a room a deep red cloak covered the hunter's body instead of thick metal.

Zelda had never seen Samus like this. Outside the armor Zelda expected Samus to seem small when compared to wearing it, but she was just as strong and imposing as before. The armor had added a few inched, but out of it Samus still towered over her. It appeared as if the hunter had been sweating earlier because the clothes clung to her body accenting Samus' muscular frame.

Zelda had the blush when she realized she may have been staring at the hunter's sculpted body a little longer than necessary. After recovering quickly the next thing Zelda noticed the royal voice giving the hunter a suspicious look.

"You're covered in sand," Zelda stated bluntly. Samus let out a short hum looking at herself before looking back at the royal. The hunter shrugged crossing the distance between them glancing at the bench silently asking for permission to join the royal. Zelda's eyebrow rose, but she patted the spot beside her telling the hunter to join her.

The hunter had the hood of the cloak up, but she put it down upon sitting. Sand fell off the hood blowing away caught in a breeze. Zelda reached out brushing some of the sand from the hunter's shoulder.

"Eventful day?" The hunter didn't appear injured so Zelda let herself relax amusement sneaking into her voice. Before the hunter answered her she ran a hand through her messy blonde locks shaking away some of the sand that got caught in her hair.

"Found your missing soldiers," Zelda blinked, she didn't know Samus heard some of Zelda's people went missing. Though Zelda wasn't about to complain if she found them.

"Really? What became of them?" The hunter went on to explain the portal and creature from her world she encountered. At first Zelda frowned hearing her people fell to such a fate, but it did warm her heart slightly that Samus went out of her way to find them for her.

"Thank you Samus, I don't like the idea of monsters finding their way into Hyrule, but at least the families of the soldiers know what became of their loved ones." Ildy while she spoke Zelda plunked a few strings on her harp to relax her frazzled nerves. Obviously Samus being dragged to Hyrule and the monsters from her world were related. The reason Ganon or anyone would want to drag so many things from Samus' world to Hyrule was beyond the monarch.

Zelda noticed the hunter giving the harp a curious look, and she realized she had gone silent playing random notes on her instrument while lost in thought.

"Sorry," the royal gave the hunter a sheepish smile. Zelda gave the harp a fond look before returning her gaze to the hunter.

"It's relaxing to play, I tend to get lost in thought when I use it." The hunter shrugged indicating she didn't mind. The monarch smiled, Samus was never bothered by anything the royal did. Whether getting lost in thought or rambling on about something of no importance, Samus didn't care.

"Anything of interest happen while you out. Last time you were in Gerudo Desert circumstances were less than favorable." Samus jolted as if remembering something. The hunter reached under her cloak for a leather bag rummaging through it before she found what she was looking for. Out of the bag she produced a small black box handing it to the royal. Zelda sat her harp down next to her, taking the box.

"What's this?" Samus said nothing handing the box over to the royal. The royal looked at the small black box curiously before popping it open. She let out a small gasp, inside the box lay a beautiful pair of sapphire earrings.

"Samus, these are beautiful. You got these for me?" Surprisingly to most, Zelda hadn't received many gifts in her life. Of course nobles and other higher up official have given her things, but they were always gifts to obtain favor. After her mother died her father was distance and other than a gift or two on her birthday. Zelda became used to receiving things not out of love or care, but a favor for something.

The hunter nodded nonchalantly as if it was no big deal. Zelda was touched, it may be just an insignificant gift, but to the royal the fact that Samus got her something on top of helping her find the missing soldiers was heartwarming that someone cared that much.

"Thank you, they're stunning." Zelda wished she could convey her gratitude with more than a simple thank you, but it would due for now.

Efficiently Zelda removed the earrings she already wore, and replaced them with the new pair. She then excitedly grinned at Samus.

"How do I look?" Samus paused for a second and Zelda might be imagining things, but a blush came to the hunter's face. However she signed a response momentarily forgetting she could speak.

" _Magnificent."_ This time Zelda knew a blush had come to her own face. She wasn't sure why, dozens of people have complimented her before. Coming from Samus though, it seemed different. Maybe it was because the hunter never lied to Zelda, if she said something she meant it. Going on that the hunter truly thought Zelda looked magnificent, a thought that made Zelda's heart skip a beat.

"Flatterer," Zelda teased, ignoring the way her heart sped up thinking about the compliment. The hunter smiled, her hands moving again to tell Zelda something.

" _I don't flatter people, only stating a fact."_ Again Zelda blushed, whether Samus was purposely trying to get such a reaction out of Zelda she wasn't sure. It certainly was working though.

"Oh hush you, or else all those stray animals that keep finding their way into the castle will be getting new homes within a week." Samus gave the royal a surprised look, either due to not realizing Zelda knew Samus had been bringing the animals in, or surprised Zelda would threaten to get rid of them. Zelda smirked, crossing her arms looking quite pleased with herself.

"I may spend most of my time in my study or the throne room, but it's kind of hard not to notice the large sheepdog bounding through the halls." The hunter looked away and Zelda laughed.

The rest of the night was spent with Samus trying and failing to convince Zelda that the stray animals getting into the castle weren't definitely not her doing.

* * *

 _ **A.N. I will fight anyone who tries to claim that Samus isn't a complete softy when it comes to animals. We're talking about the woman who took the time from escaping an exploding planet to save some animals in Super Metroid.**_

 _ **Next chapter marks the beginning of the Brawl arc, and I'll tell you all now I don't plan on following Brawl exactly as it happens in the game. To me that's boring if I wanted to know what happens in Brawl as it does I'd just play the game. Plus in the Subspace emissary I think Samus and Zelda only see each other at the very end of the story, so that's not happening. With that I'll see you guys next chapter!**_

 _ **Real Quick side note got fan fiction to work with me again, so I'll go back and fix up the last chapter when I get a chance.**_


	18. A Friendly Farewell

_**A.N. Bam! Another new chapter and it's only been what a few days. I like to think these quick updates will make up for not updating for months on endXD. With that enjoy the chapter lovely readers^_^!**_

* * *

Chapter 17

Hyrule Field always seemed extra peaceful in the spring. Wild flowers bloomed across the open fields, filling the air with their sweet smell. A refreshing rain had fell the other day, and now the field was thriving with new life. After a few cold months of being covered in snow, it was a much welcomed feeling. Especially to the Hero of Time who spent most of the winter cooped up in the ranch, unable to travel far due to the cold. Though Hyrule's winter's were far from harsh they still weren't the most pleasant time.

"And you say Hunter Aran fell from the sky here?" Link looked to his fairy companion, a fairy from Subspace to be exact. The fairy didn't give a name other than saying they were an emissary for Subspace, but that was how it usually went whenever Subspace sent someone to Hyrule to give messages to the hero and ruler of Hyrule.

"Ya, fell out of the sky from a portal a couple months ago." It was hard to believe so much time had passed since the hunter showed up in Hyrule. Not that Link was complaining, the hero had long since began considering the hunter a friend. It took awhile for Link to adjust to the hunter's naturally reserved personality, but Link was slowly getting the hunter to open up.

"On behalf of Master Hand I apologize for such inconvenience. We've been having difficulty with our warp since last year's incident. Hopefully we will have them up to their full capabilities by next week." The tournament was going to begin in two weeks, and Link could hardly contain his excitement. Though last year was a complete disaster, the hero was still excited for this year's upcoming tournament.

"You should apologize to Samus, she's the one who got dragged here after all." Though Link doubted the hunter cared much, she seemed rather content living up at the castle with Zelda. Link had only visited a few times during the winter, but one could have sworn the hunter always lived there by how easily she slipped into life at the castle.

"In any case I must inform Queen Zelda of the upcoming tournament, and now I must meet with Hunter Aran to send her home." The hero nodded, leading the way towards Castle Town.

The fairy followed him up to the castle where two guards stood at attention waiting at the road leading up to the castle. Link smirked it looked like Samus certainly knocked some sense into the guards. From what he heard the hunter had started sparing with them which eventually turned into training for the guards, and now Link could say he definitely couldn't sneak into the castle without someone seeing him. That didn't mean he did't try of course. It was almost like a game now, Samus would only agree to do more outrageous things with him if he managed to get into the castle unnoticed. Unfortunately the green clad hero had still yet to sneak in and convince Samus it was a good idea to blow up some noble snob's house. Link liked to think he was wearing her down though.

The guards gave Link a respectful nod before standing aside to let them pass. Link gave them a friendly wave before walking by. The fairy followed behind silently, Link frowned. Usually fairies were much more talkative, even ones from Subspace.

Link didn't get a chance to ponder the fairy more though, at the castle entrance two more guards stood watch.

"Afternoon guys, Zelda busy right now?" The guards were much less annoyed with Link nowadays. Ever since one day Samus caught the hero crawling through a drain pipe to sneak into the castle. Link wasn't sure if Zelda was ever going to let him live that down.

"Her majesty is having lunch right now Sir Link." The one guard answered. Link grinned Zelda seemed to be getting things to be less hectic, each day the royal was less tied up with her work. Link had a sneaking suspicion it was the hunter's presence doing it, but it didn't really matter as long as Zelda wasn't overworking herself.

The guards let them in, and Link lead the fairy over to the garden where he knew Zelda always had lunch with Samus. When he approached the garden he heard Zelda's voice holding an amused but trying to sound disapproving tone.

"You know there seems to be quite a few cats hanging around the castle?" Link smirked, purposely walking slower so her could hear what the hunter did before interrupting.

"Interesting," The hunter's reply was simple, and Link wanted to laugh. He didn't have to as Zelda giggled.

"Yes, apparently someone keeps bringing in strays from Castle Town. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that?" Samus didn't respond, and Link could only assume she either shrugged or shook her head. That only prompted another laugh from the royal.

"Really? So I didn't see you bringing in a box of kittens the other day?" Link slowed downed a little more wanting to hear what the hunter would say to that.

"It was raining." The hero snorted, this was the scary bounty hunter that everyone feared. The woman sneaking stray animals into the castle so they wouldn't get sick from the rain. Then again she may sneak kittens into the castle, but Samus could still beat the crap out of anyone Link knew of. Perhaps it was a good thing under all that armor was a big softie.

"Of course how silly of me, they certainly are keeping the mice at bay…" Zelda didn't get to finish her thought, as she spotted Link approaching. She gave a friendly smile, and Samus gave a nod in greeting. The hunter's helmet was off allowing Link to see her face. It took long enough, but eventually Samus had let him see her without the helmet one day. More by accident really, the hunter was with Zelda when Link decided to pop in. Her helmet was off and Link finally got to see who was beating him in the tournament since day one. Since then the hunter was much more lax on letting him see her face.

"Hey guys the emissary from Subspace is here." Gesturing to the fairy, it flew past Link to the two former teammates.

"Greeting Queen Zelda, as was Hero Link you have been invited to participate in a fighting tournament in Subspace hosted by Master Hand." Zelda didn't say anything taking a sip of her tea, expression passive. From her manner Link figured the royal still wasn't thrilled over what happened last time. She wasn't too thrilled with the idea of going to the tournament in the first place last time either. It had been a miracle Link convinced her to go.

"Hunter Aran, you also have been invited, and on the behalf of Master Hand I apologize for the portal that brought you here. We are still having difficulties with out warp…" Samus didn't say anything merely nodding in understanding.

"If you are still having problems when will the tournament take place?" Zelda had a calculating look about her, Link frowned the Queen was being cautious about the tournament. Which was understandable since they all nearly died last time.

"Next week, I will provide you with a location and time of when we will be opening a portal into your world to transport you to Subspace. As for you Aran, you can accompany me back to Subspace when I leave. We can send you back to your dimension from there." For a split second the hunter's expression became unreadable, Link certainly couldn't tell what she was thinking. He could see a flash of sadness cross Zelda's face, but then it went back to the expressionless Queen face.

With that the fairy gave them the information needed to get to Subspace. Then it informed Samus to meet them outside the castle in few minutes. There was an awkward pause after the fairy left. Link could tell both former teammates were uncertain how what to say about the hunter's quick departure. Link was almost sad he brought the emissary without notice at least then the former teammates would have time for a proper goodbye.

"Hey! Come on it's only for a week we'll see each other at the tournament." The hero gave the hunter a friendly punch on the arm. Samus nodded standing up grabbing her helmet, but not putting it on yet. Zelda stood too her eyes not leaving Samus. Quickly Link said something about having to catch up with Malon exiting the garden, though he paused after rounding a corner. He lingered for a moment and heard Zelda talking. The hero reasoned that he wanted to make sure his friends weren't too torn up about the hunter having to leave.

"Rather prompt aren't they?" Link assumed the silence was a nod coming from the hunter.

"This time take care of yourself alright?" There was a worried edge to Zelda's voice that Link has never heard before.

"I will," Link heard Zelda sigh, then he heard the sound of Samus' armor shifting he didn't dare to look to see what was going on. There was one thing Link was truly afraid of in this world, and that was an angry Zelda. Eavesdropping on her conversation would most definitely bring the royal's wrath upon him.

"Thank you, now you should probably catch up with the emissary before I change my mind and keep you here." Tiptoeing Link peaked around the corner to see if they were moving yet. The hunter was about to put her helmet back on, but Link saw Zelda stop her asking her to wait. The Queen took hold of Samus' collar, and pulled the hunter down to place a kiss on her cheek.

Link's own shock mirrored the hunter's own, but at least Link wasn't blushing like mad like the hunter. Zelda too was blushing, and the hero decided he'd seen enough. Quickly Link made himself scarce before either noticed him still there.

* * *

"Are you ready Hunter Aran?" The small fairy creature asked Samus. The hunter only nodded in response. The bounty hunter was still reeling from the kiss Zelda gave her just a few minutes ago. The logical part of Samus' mind told her it was just a friendly kiss goodbye, or was it? She wasn't sure, Samus barely had the concept of close friendships down let alone romantic. The very thought of anything more than friendship made the hunter shudder.

Samus shook her head trying to focus, it had been a friendly goodbye that was all. A portal was opening in front of the hunter and fairy, similar to the one that brought Samus here. This one seemed much more controlled, a small rift opening in the air before expanding.

"Please step through," Samus nodded taking a glance behind her at the castle that she'd been living at for months. Zelda stood not far away two guards flanking her on either side. She gave a wave upon seeing Samus looking her way. Not thinking about it Samus returned it before turning around. Samus wondered if this was what it was like to leave a home.

She shook the thought away, stepping through the portal. The next thing Samus knew she was walking through a room similar to the old warp room from the first tournament. Samus stopped looking around it was just a plain room with black walls on all sides. She waited and soon the fairy appeared next to her flying pass the hunter towards an electronic door.

"Please wait here, we will create a portal to your world. Where in your dimension would you like us to send you?"

"Tallon IV." The fairy jumped in the air not expecting the hunter to vocally answer. They quickly recovered though flying out the door.

Within moments Samus felt the air shift as she was teleported back to her world. A splash resonated as Samus landed in a puddle on the surface of Tallon IV. The hunter quickly gauged her location, and began walking to where she knew the ship she left here was so many months ago. The rain fell gently on the planet's surface as it always did.

* * *

"The fighters are suspicious. Whatever you're doing is going to let them catch on." Ganondorf grumbled to the computer screen, the disembodied hand that was on the other side gave no physical sign to show it cared about what he was saying.

"The lines between dimensions becoming thin was expected. It doesn't matter though, just do as I have instructed and you will get the power you desire." The dark lord glared, crossing his arms.

"The hunter was in Hyrule! And you think this isn't a problem?" That bastard hunter had beaten him, the single thought had gnawed at Ganon ever since he awoke after being dragged to safety after his defeat.

"It does not matter…"

"You won't be saying that when this whole plan comes crashing down because of her." Ganon had underestimated Samus Aran he knew that. He believed that his plan was foolproof, and because of that it failed. It made Ganon sick with rage thinking about how close he was to taking control of not just Hyrule, but dozens of other dimensions. If only that damned hunter had perished in Gerudo Desert like she should have.

Now he had to follow the orders of Master Hand the creator of Subspace, and apparently also the bringer of every hero's upcoming death. Though Ganon didn't care about working with the hand creature. He did not like being treated like a lesser.

"If you believe the hunter is such an issue I may have someone who can help you with it." Ganon was about to ask who when the door behind him slide open. The dark lord jumped into a fighting stance only to narrows his eyes at the creature before him.

"What are you?" The creature smirked, its wings ruffled closer to its body allowing it to fit its large frame into the room. Yellow eyes reflected Ganon's face back at him, yet they held some intelligence in them.

"Someone who hates Samus Aran more than you ever could." Serrated teeth sparkled in the dim light as the creature smirked. Ganon returned the expression, his annoyance with Master Hand forgotten at the sight of such a monster.

"I think we'll get along just fine then."

* * *

"You seem distracted your majesty?" Zelda jolted not realizing how long she had been staring out the window idly. The cat that had been purring on her lap made an irritated meow before settling down again. Zelda ran her fingers down the animal's back until it calmed again, purring contently. One of the many stray animals Samus had somehow gotten into the castle without a single maid noticing before it was too late.

"If you wish I can give my report another time your majesty?" Zelda shook her head, finally turning her gaze on her guard captain standing before her.

"I apologize Captain, I find my thoughts are elsewhere." To be exact her thoughts were on a certain hunter that should be back in her home dimension by now. It had only been a few hours, but Zelda already missed Samus' presence at the castle. It was weird thinking that in a few hours she wouldn't be having dinner, or talking with the hunter about the day's events.

"Not to overstep my bounds your majesty. Are you perhaps worried about Sir Aran?" Inwardly Zelda chuckled at the title most of the castle had taken to calling Samus. The perplexed expression Samus took whenever someone addressed her was certainly amusing. Clearly not many people in Samus' world showed her such respect.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't Captain." It was odd, the Captain usually was so formal with her, but Zelda was happy to have someone to talk to. Link was spending as much time as he could with Malon before they left for Subspace, so Zelda was alone at the castle.

"Sir Aran is very capable, I'm sure she will return in full health." The Captain spoke with confidence, the man had been incredibly impressed by Samus' fighting skills. Plus he was grateful the hunter helped whip his men into shape.

"Return?" The thought didn't even cross Zelda's mind of Samus coming back. After all it had been an accident that the hunter ended up in Hyrule in the first place. A very suspicious accident that was definitely making Zelda keep an eye open this tournament.

"Is she not?" Though Zelda joked about keeping Samus in Hyrule, she would never force the hunter to stay. Well, maybe not never, the hunter's tendency to not take care of herself did put Zelda on edge.

"I don't believe so," Zelda spotted the slightest slump in the Captain shoulders, and her ears twitched hearing the Captain mutter a curse.

"Captain?" The man jumped, looking nervous at being heard.

"Nothing your majesty," Zelda smirked, one of the many perks of being Queen her subjects couldn't hide anything from her.

"Really? Well I would like to hear it anyway, no need for secrets Captain." The royal paused waiting for the Captain to answer her.

"I...really it is not appropriate your majesty." Zelda's eyebrow rose, she said nothing her expression saying she wasn't going to dismiss the poor man until he told her.

"I lost a bet that is all your majesty."

"A bet? About what?" The Captain fidgeted where he stood, looking like he'd rather be facing down Ganondorf himself than the Queen.

"Well you see your majesty, since you've refused all other suitors since you took the throne. Then you took in Sir Aran without a second thought, and treated her as you have. A lot of the staff started to gossip. We, I mean they thought Sir Aran was a suitor, so the staff started a betting pool…" Zelda raised a hand to stop the Captain's nervous explanation. Somehow the royal was holding back the blush threatening her face. Zelda was the Queen and she had an image to uphold.

"That will be all Captain, please make sure the money from this...bet is returned. I will not have my staff behaving so childishly." The Captain practically flew out of Zelda's study with a quick 'yes your majesty'. Samus, a suitor? Ridiculous, how could anyone think they were anything but close friends Zelda told herself.

Then why are you blushing? Another part of the royal's mind told her. They were friends, nothing more! The Captain mentioned Zelda treating Samus a certain way. What did he mean? Did she treat Samus different? Zelda didn't know, of course she opened her home to the hunter. She certainly wasn't going to let Samus sleep in some alley in Castle Town when the hunter could stay with her. Knowing Samus, she wouldn't doubt the hunter would sleep in an alley.

Zelda stood stepping away from her desk, the cat jumping down off her lap with an indignant meow. She was going on a walk, she had to clear her head from these thoughts. In a week she would see the hunter again, and it would not do to have such preposterous thoughts distracting her.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Some might say that since Samus is a woman there's no way she could be a suitor to Zelda. To that I say I'm writing a story about a fictional magic elf lady falling in love with a deadly bounty hunter from space. I threw realism out the window a looonnnngggg time ago. Besides I've always head cannoned that Hyrule was a matriarchal society, so they'd be chill with Zelda being with Samus. Enough about that though more importantly our heroines are beginning to think their feelings are more than friendship. Next chapter officially begins the brawl arc of the story, so I'll see you guys next chapter!**_

 ** _Side Note an answer to SamuraiGunner's question on whether I'm going to include the Smash 4 characters at all_**

 ** _As of now I have no plans to include them. I might mention them or hint about them, but I don't plan on continuing the story into Smash 4. Brawl will be the end of this story. I do love most of the Smash 4 characters, so after this story is over before moving on to a sequel I might do some oneshots about the forth tournament._**


	19. Perfectly Safe

_**A.N. And the Brawl arc begins! Sorry for the delay guys on the bright side I'm pretty ahead of the game I have up to chapter 24 done I'm just really slow at editing. I think I'll upload the next chapter sometime this week I don't want keep you guys hanging for the duration of this part of the story. With that enjoy the chapter guys!**_

* * *

Chapter 18

"Careful Zelda you're frowning so much your face might get stuck like that." The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom teased the hylian, but the frown remained ever presence. Zelda's ears twitched the royal scanning every inch of the stadium they were currently in the stands of.

"Something doesn't bode well, I can feel something is wrong." The Master Hand claimed everything was fine this tournament, but Zelda had her doubts. As soon as the hylians made it back to Subspace Zelda had a bad feeling running down her spine. This time around, the fighters were not brought to the city they stayed in last time, but way out in the outskirts to a stadium in the sky. While there was lodging for the fighters within the stadium, and it seemed reasonable to hold the tournament away from the damaged city. All of it seemed suspicious to the Queen.

"I think someone is just tense since they haven't seen their favorite metal friend yet." Peach teased walking with Zelda up to a box where they could watch the upcoming fight between Mario and Kirby. Zelda wouldn't lie and say she wasn't worried about Samus, but it wasn't just her. She hadn't seen most of the fighters since coming. Even Link had disappeared shortly after they arrived, all the fighters were still on the roster so they had to be around somewhere though.

"Aren't you worried Peach? This all seems very suspicious." Peach didn't answer for a moment, as the two had arrived at the box that overlooked the stadium. A rare frown crossed the blonde's face.

"I suppose I am a bit worried, but I've seen both Mario and Luigi, so I guess that helps calms me down. Besides Ganondorf isn't here this time to cause trouble. Everything should be fine." Zelda couldn't believe Peach's words, not with the dark feeling that something bad was happening. It didn't help matters either that practically every day after Samus left Hyrule the Queen was bombarded by nightmares. None of them made any sense to the royal, and the lack of proper sleep left Zelda with a headache keeping the royal on further edge.

Then there was the fact that she had yet to see any sign of Samus. She saw the hunter's name on the roster so she had to be here, but Zelda couldn't find any sign of her. Zelda rubbed the back of her hand anxiously. None of this was good, if it wasn't for the fact that Zelda couldn't find the hunter she would be dragging Link and herself right back to Hyrule. However the royal wouldn't leave until she confirmed that nothing was going to put her friend's life at stake.

"Zelda, calm down dear." The Queen jumped when Peach placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry, I guess I am rather on edge." Looking down at the stadium it looked like Mario and Kirby had already made their way onto the arena.

"Considering what happened last year….All of us should probably be a little on edge." The shout of the announcer stopped the two royal's conversation as the battle began.

Elsewhere high, high in the clouds another watched the fight with excitement.

"Come on left punch! Yes!" The young man with pure white wings watched the fight through a clear pool of water that showed the battle like a television screen.

"The smash tournament has begun already Pit?" Looking away from the fight the young man grinned hearing a woman's voice come from nowhere in particular.

"You bet Lady Palutena! Mario and Kirby are opening, this is so awesome!" Pit yelled out in joy his fist pumping in the air. He turned his gaze back at the screen.

"I hope they do team matches again this year. Those fights were the best!" A laugh came from the unseen woman while Pit continued to watch the fighting.

"I think Master Hand's priority this time around should be keeping the tournament from ending up like last year's." Pit mumbled something akin to "stupid Ganondork".

"Oh hey look! In the stands it's Princess Peach and Princess Zelda." Excitement was clear in Pit's voice having seen both women fight amazingly in the last tournament.

"I believe it's Queen Zelda now." Lady Palutena corrected in a matter of fact tone.

"Really? She's a Queen now, I thought they just stayed Princess forever." Another laugh sounded out from the goddess.

"How ridiculous Pit, of course a Princess becomes a Queen eventually." Pit huffed at the goddess' tone.

"I'm just saying, Peach has been a Princess for a long time…" The angel waited a moment for some clever comeback from the goddess, but nothing came.

"Lady Palutena?" The goddess was silent when she finally did speak her voice was cold.

"Something's wrong."

The fight was going in Mario's favor, the pink hero of Dreamland was losing ground fast. Kirby was sent flying across the stage by a sharp kick from the plumber. Zelda watched as Mario went dashing across the stage to capitalize on the dazed hero, but as he did the air shook.

Zelda's head snapped up watching in horror as the sky was swallowed up by blood red clouds. Out of the clouds a metal monster of a ship tore through the sky, its engines roaring like a beast.

The hylian saw a hatch open on the bottom of the ship, and black sludge almost like snow fell from the sky. Mario and Kirby were soon surrounded by the sludge that quickly took form into strange puppet like creatures with red eyes and purple skin.

The royals' shared a glance before jumping from their seats. Zelda used Farore's wind and teleported herself to stand next to the two heroes. Peach landed next to her, gently floating down with her parasol.

Two creature dashed forward, one Mario intercepted punching the monster back. The other Peach blocked its approach with her parasol. Then Zelda blew the creature away with a blast of magic fire. The defeated creatures fell, and melted away back into the sludge that formed them.

"What in the goddesses' name are these things?" Zelda jumped out of the way as one creature tried tackling her.

"They're certainly not from the Mushroom Kingdom!" Peach answered, twirling around Mario allowing the plumber to blast a fireball at a monster.

Kirby opened his mouth taking a deep breath swallowing one of the monsters whole. Then to the other heroes shock the pink puff ball spat the creature back out making a noise of disgust. While Kirby reeled at the bad taste Zelda hurried to the hero's aid using her magic to reflect back an attacking creature.

Quickly recovering Kirby jumped up high before landing on the monster in the shape of a pink rock. When he reformed, the pink hero gave Zelda a friendly wave in thanks.

The stadium shook as something large came from under the arena's platform. Out of the darkness below a creature of emess size jumped onto the stage. Mario was swatted away like a fly in the confusion as the stage shook.

"Mario!" Peach cried out watching the red clad plumber disappear into the distance. Peach yelped when the monster snatched her up while the Princess was distracted.

The monster was large taking up half the stage. Plant-like with leaf hands and a green body. Its red and white spotted head had a mouth that put Kirby to shame. The monster roared showing off its huge teeth. Zelda remembered Peach once telling her about Piranha Plants in the Mushroom Kingdom, but she never mentioned one of this size. It held two cages in its hands one already held Peach within its iron bars.

Zelda dodged as the creature slammed the empty cage down where she once stood. There was no way she was going to let that creature touch her.

"Kirby! Get its attention I'll free Peach!" The pink hero's face became determined. He ran at the monster jumping high and giving a it a swift kick to the face. The Piranha Plant roared in anger swinging the empty cage about trying to hit Kirby.

While the other cage was still Zelda sent a blast of magic fire hurling towards the creature's hand. The smell of the monster's burning plant like skin filled the air. Yet it didn't release the cage. It turned its gaze back to Zelda, swatting away Kirby with the cage holding Peach. One could hear the royal yelp as she was thrown around the small cage.

Zelda dodged another swing of the cage, then another. Frowning, it would be a blessing to have her teammate by her side. They could defeat the monsters together, Zelda knew.

Samus wasn't here though, and Zelda soon found a metal cage slamming painfully against her body. The next thing Zelda knew those iron bars were inclosed around her, and she was looking down at Kirby who faced the monster alone.

The monster swung his caged victims at the hero, not letting either royal think long enough before getting their skull bashed against the iron bars. Kirby fought the Piranha Plant using quick movements he avoided each swing from the beast, and at every opening he took a strike at one of the cages trying to free the royals.

Eventually, Zelda's cage gave way to Kirby's attacks. The Queen landed gracefully as the cage fell apart. The monster stumbled, not expecting the pink hero to be able to break the cage.

A blast of magic fire and another blow from Kirby made the beast drop the other cage, before he fell back into the depths of the stadium. Peach's cage had broken just enough, and the pink clad royal was crawling out of her prison when another new face entered the ring.

Zelda spun around as a large thud sounded out behind them. A large fat man with a mustache similar to Mario's laughed. In his hands he held a strange device, it looked almost like a gun but was more akin to a small cannon. Lights flashing on the device with a flash a black energy fired out of the gun heading right towards Peach.

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was still tangled in the cage, and Zelda nor Kirby could move fast enough. The blast nailed Peach, breaking her free from the cage. The royal was enveloped in a black sludge for a moment. Then when it fell away, Zelda's eyes widened.

No longer was Peach the bright happy Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, but her skin was like stone frozen. She was a statue not blinking, her skin pale, and even a small stand was planted under her feet like a trophy.

The fat man let out a laugh of triumph, running over he grabbed Peach around her waist with one hand lifting up the frozen Princess like it was nothing. He sent a smirk Zelda's way, and the royal bristled. Magic fire ignited in Zelda's hands, but before she could send it something else dropped from the ship.

Two robots exactly like the ones Zelda and Samus found under Ganon's control in Hyrule circled a bomb that was dropped in the middle of the stage. They connected their hands into slots in the circular bomb and extended it into a cylinder shape. Inside a timer became apparent, it ticked down with barely a minute left on it.

Zelda's head snapped back to Peach who was gone, the fat man disappearing while their eyes were on the bomb.

"Kirby! We have to go!" The Hero of Dreamland summoned his warp star, and with barely seconds left the two flew out of the stadium. The bomb went off with barely a sound only a ripple in the air, as dark purple energy expanded out consuming the stadium. Zelda's eyes narrowed looking back at the destruction. It was just like the mass of energy that Ganon had used to destroy Subspace before. However Zelda didn't want to find out if that was truly a portal or not.

"Holy cow! Lady Palutena we have to do something!" Pit yelled his hands gripping the sides of the pool of water watching the scene before him unfold. He heard the goddess hum in thought.

"This doesn't seem right, I've meet Master Hand, and he's not the kind to let chaos go on his watch. Crazy Hand maybe, but not Master Hand. Something else is at work here." Palutena paused, then a ray of light appeared at the far side of the room. Out of the light stepped a woman with emerald green hair, wearing pristine white robes.

Pit rushed over to the goddess bowing down respectfully. Palutena's hands glowed and formed Pit's weapon out of seemingly nothing.

"Go Pit, they're going to need all the help they can get for this." Pit nodded rushing over to the large double doors on the other side of the room.

"I can give you the power of flight just long enough to catch up to Kirby. Don't waste it, that warp star of his is fast." Pit nodded giving the goddess a grin.

"Don't worry, I got this!" With that Pit jumped out as the doors opened revealing nothing but open skies. Pit stretched his wings catching the air speeding down to catch up with the hero and Queen.

"Above us!" Zelda cried out, Kirby reacted jerking the star before the two could be impaled by a bird monster's sharp beak. It missed opening its wings out to stop its descent. The bird let out an angry squawk glaring at the heroes above.

Two more bird monsters converged on them. Zelda let out a blast of fire at the one below, but a jerk of the star trying to avoid another divebomb from another bird caused her to miss.

The third monster went spiraling towards them, but before it could a blue arrow came from above nailing the creature. The bird disappeared dissolving into black sludge that floated away in the wind.

Zelda looked up to see a figure approaching them. Another arrow hit the other bird, using this distraction Zelda sent a blast of magic towards the last one finishing them off.

"Hey! Thought you guys could use a hand!" A young voice yelled, out of the clouds flew in young boy looking no older than thirteen. Zelda's eyes widened seeing he had pure white wings on his back that flapped hard trying to keep up with the warp star.

"Could you slowed down please, it's harder than it looks to fly this fast!" Zelda blinked breaking out of her surprise. She tapped Kirby who had been so focused on getting them away from the bomb that he had been focusing on flying solely.

"You can take us down now Kirby. I think we're safe." The determined look left the pink hero's face and he grinned happily taking the star down.

They landed in a canyon of sorts with great red stone as far as the eye could see. Though to the north Zelda could see lush green covering the ground, there must be a forest over there she mused. In the other direction Zelda could see buildings, but they looked old and decrepit even at a distance. Kirby hopped over to the boy who landed next to them sweating from the effort of flying so fast.

"Whew! When Lady Palutena said the warp star could go fast, I didn't think she meant that fast!" He laughed scratching the back of his head. He perked up though seeing the pink hero in front of him.

"WOW! You're Kirby right? Hero of Dreamland? It's great to meet you!" Kirby smiled, bouncing on his feet the boy's excitement rubbing off on him. It was then the boy turned his gaze to Zelda letting out another excited gasp.

"And you're Pri..sorry Queen Zelda. I watched the tournament last year, you and Samus Aran made a great team." Zelda smiled softly, the boy was so excited he sounded like he was a fan meeting their favorite celebrity for the first time.

"There's no need to call me Queen, just Zelda will do. Thank you for the help, may I ask your name?"

"My name's Pit, the Goddess Palutena sent me down to help you guys." Zelda crossed her arms, she'd never heard of such a Goddess. Though since this was a world made up of others from many different dimension. It was highly possible there were other gods out there. Perhaps it was just the hylian in her making her automatically skeptical of any deity that wasn't one of the golden goddesses of Hyrule.

"You know I've met Nayru, she's a little too boring to be around though." Zelda jumped, Pit didn't say that, and certainly not Kirby. It was a woman's voice, coming from nowhere yet Zelda could hear it as if she was right next to her.

"She's very good at riddles, as you probably already know with your prophetic dreams and all." Zelda's eyes narrowed, only a few close members of her staff, Link, and Samus knew about the dreams the Triforce of Wisdom gave her. Who was this woman and how did she have this knowledge.

"I am the Goddess of Light Palutena! Sometimes it's fun to go see what the gods of other worlds are up to. I'm still not wild over the human form Hylia…" Before Zelda could snap at the woman for speaking in such an insulting way about her lands gods, Pit spoke up.

"I didn't know you knew gods from other dimensions Lady Palutena, that's amazing!" Zelda's ears twitched, deciding already she didn't like this Goddess. It didn't help matters that now that they were relatively safe. It was starting to sink in that yet again the tournament was becoming a death trap, and Zelda had no idea where Samus or Link were. They were no doubt in danger though, and Zelda felt herself enraged that Master Hand allowed this to happen twice.

"Don't worry Hylia, the hero and your lover are both alive." Zelda would have snapped at the goddess for calling her Hylia again. If she wasn't too busy blushing over the name she called Samus by.

"We're just friends," Zelda stated coldly, not letting the goddess get a rise out of her. She heard Palutena laugh, and the royal rubbed her forehead sighing.

"We have more important things to worry about right now. What's going on?" The goddess stopped laughing once Zelda asked her question. Her voice became serious losing the playful tone it once had.

"I can't say I'm sure myself. That bomb you avoided sucked up that entire area into a deeper part of Subspace. From what I can tell bombs like that are being set off all over the place." The goddess explained, Zelda looked off into the distance even as far as they were she could still see the black and purple mass of energy.

"Whoever is doing this has to stop. It's making the lines between everyone's worlds too thin, rifts between dimensions are popping up everywhere." Palutena's voice was stern, perhaps a bit angry.

"Too thin? Is that why Samus was dragged into Hyrule?" Zelda had a feeling Ganon's attack last time was part of something bigger. Pulling apart dimensions was a little too large scale, even for Ganondorf. The man may be greedy, but he wasn't foolish.

"Most likely, she probably stumbled upon an area where the line between her world and yours was breaking….Pit are you following all of this?" Pit jumped upon being addressed, he scratched the back of his head.

"Of course, all our dimensions are kind of like bubbles, and if one bumps into the other then there's a chance air or in our case things could be exchanged between the bubbles uhhhh right?" Pit waited for Palutena to confirm his answer.

"Yes, normally all the different worlds can exist and bump into each other with no issues. Whoever is dropping the bombs is trying to pull bits of different worlds into Subspace."

"Thus making everything unstable, and if your bubble analogy has any merit. Our worlds will 'pop'." Zelda finished for her, and there was a grim pause from the goddess. Even Kirby who Zelda wasn't sure if he fully understood what they were talking about was frowning.

"This can't just be Ganondorf behind this. Hyrule doesn't have the magic or technology to rip worlds apart like this." That was odd, Zelda knew Ganondorf would never ally with someone more powerful than himself. The dark lord always had to be on top, be the stronger person in command.

"He certainly is helping though, so are the other villains. I can't tell who's pulling the strings though." Palutena sighed, frustrated that she didn't have all the answers.

"Whoever is behind this doesn't matter though, they must be stopped." Zelda nodded, agreeing on that. Not just Subspace was being threatened now, but every world across every dimension.

"Hylia, stick with Pit I can only communicate when you're around him. I can lead you to the other fighters scattered through Subspace." Zelda's eyebrow twitched at being called Hylia yet again. It was told in legend that the royal family were descendants of the goddess Hylia, but that was a legend. It was arrogant to put oneself on the same level of a god. That was the kind of thinking that created people like Ganondorf.

"Very well, where is the closest fighter, and don't call me that. My name is Zelda." Though Zelda wished to demand where Samus and Link were. She knew that it was selfish to ignore everyone else that was dragged into this mess.

"Two over in that abandoned town." Zelda looked to the abandoned buildings before nodding. They weren't too far it wouldn't take them too long to reach the abandoned town.

"Let's go the sooner we find everyone the better." The sooner she found Samus the better.

* * *

 _ **A.N. First I'd like to apologize last chapter I'm a liar when I said I wouldn't be including any of the smash 4 characters, because Palutena will be around. Though I'm not including her in a fighting sense, so technically I didn't fully lieXD. I don't know how it came about but I really like her and Zelda's dynamic since Zelda is more reserved and calm about things and Palutena is sassy Palutena. Plus the idea of Palutena knowing Hylia before she reincarnated as a mortal came to me while writing and i've fallen in love with it. I can definitely see Palutena hanging out with the gods of other worlds when she's not taking care of business in her own dimension.**_

 _ **Anyway this first chapter followed the beginning of Brawl mostly until the end. Like I've said before there's no fun in it if I followed the events of Brawl to a letter, so be ready for things to be a bit different. On that note I'll see you guys next chapter^^.**_


	20. New and Old Faces

_**A.N. You know I should stop saying when I'm going to update next in the author notes, because then it seems life likes to stop me from fulfilling my word. Sorry for the wait on this one party people enjoy the chapter^-^.**_

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Chapter 19

"This place gives me the creeps." Pit's wings ruffled, giving an uncertain look at the abandoned buildings around them. Kirby too made a nervous sound walking close to Zelda. The royal herself was frowning, her ears twitched not hearing anything of interest. It was hard to hear though with the rain coming down, and the occasional clap of thunder made Zelda jump.

Something crunched under her boot, and Zelda paused looking down she had stepped on an odd piece of stone. Looking around there were other chunks scattered about. They looked like they were once apart of a statue of some kind.

Zelda raised an eyebrow curious what the stone once formed, but disregarded her curiosity. This was an abandoned town after all, it could just be the remains of an ordinary statute. Zelda felt a tug at her dress, she looked down to see Kirby trying to gain her attention. He pointed to footprints in the dirt.

"Footprints sweet! That means one of the fighters must be close by." Pit exclaimed excited at the idea of finding one of the other heroes. Zelda nodded, not saying anything looking at the footprints. They were small, and looked like they were made by tennis shoes. Zelda's brow furrowed trying to recall any of the previous heroes wearing such shoes that left imprints like these ones.

The group followed the footprints finding a few monsters along the way, but otherwise the town was as abandoned as it looked.

"What I would give for an umbrella right about now." Pit ran a hand through his soaked hair, flapping his wings to get rid of the water clinging to his feathers.

"Hey Zelda you wouldn't happen to know any magic that could make an umbrella for us? Or stop the rain, that would be nice too." A small smiled came to Zelda's lips at the angel's question.

"I'm afraid not, once the rain stops I can make a fire to help dry us off though." Zelda gave the angel a sympathetic look as he groaned at the rain.

Before anything else could be said Zelda's ears twitched hearing something. Heavy breathing, someone was up ahead.

Picking up the pace up ahead Zelda spotted a flash of yellow. Getting closer Zelda saw a young boy, he couldn't be any older than ten give or take a year. The child was on his knees gasping for air as if he just ran a mile. Worry took over Zelda, and she rushed over to his aid, but as soon as her boots splashed in a puddle the boy's head snapped up.

Terrified eyes locked with Zelda's, and the boy scrambled to his feet running away.

"Wait! I'm not going to hurt you!" Zelda called out, chasing after the boy. He kept running ignoring the Queen. Pit and Kirby followed suit chasing after the child. Up ahead Zelda saw familiar black sludge bubbling on the ground. The boy wasn't paying attention to it, too busy trying to get away from the small group.

"Kirby! Pit! The monsters!" The two heroes wasted no time seeing the danger the boy was about to run into. Pit jumped into the air taking flight, and Kirby with a quick burst of speed dashed at where the creatures were forming.

The boy skidded to a stop when a puddle of black sludge took shape right in front of him. However Zelda didn't give it a chance, using Farore's wind she was between the boy and monster in a seconds. The monster was blown away with a blast of magic fire in an instant.

The child gazed at Zelda in awe, before he began inching away from her fear still prevalent in his eyes. Zelda raised her hands in a calming gesture kneeling down on the ground.

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you." He didn't move frozen, the poor child was terrified right now. He was completely soaked from the rain, his blonde hair was messy from running and clung to his head due to being wet. Zelda saw a few scrapes and cuts on his arms and legs. There was a particularly nasty looking cut across his cheek.

Hand glowing with a golden light Zelda reached out and touched the damaged cheek. The boy flinched, but didn't stop her. Within moments the cut was sealed as if it never happened. Zelda removed her hand, and the boy rubbed his cheek surprised the cut wasn't there anymore.

"Better?" Zelda gave a warm smile, trying to calm the child's nerves.

"Thank you," He murmured shyly, satisfied he wouldn't go running again. Zelda looked to her companions to see if they needed any help. She gave a nod to the heroes as they finished off the last monster.

Standing up Zelda held out a hand to help the boy up as well.

"Come, let's get you out of the rain and dried off." He looked uncertain for a moment then he took Zelda's hand and clung to it. Zelda helped get the boy to his feet as Pit and Kirby came over now that the monsters were defeated. Kirby hopped over to the boy and gave him a friendly smile and a wave. Though nervous at first, he returned it unable to look sad in the face of the pink hero.

Zelda too smiled at the sight before looking around for someplace to take cover from the rain. She spotted a building that looked relatively stable. The small group took shelter inside, the old building protecting them from the rain.

The Queen asked Pit to look around for things they could burn, and the angel was happy to help get them all dry. When Pit returned with pieces of old wood furniture, Zelda quickly set the wood alight with her magic. Soon the building was bathed in the fire's gentle glow.

The whole time the boy didn't say anything, he held onto Zelda's hand. The Queen didn't mind though, it was clear he was still calming himself down from whatever he went through.

While Zelda tended to the boy Kirby and Pit warmed themselves up by the fire. The angel animatedly telling Kirby about hot springs or something along those lines. Zelda gave the two a smile before turning to the boy.

He had sat down a little ways away from the other two, his knees drawn up to his chest. Zelda sat next to him putting a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Hello I'm Zelda, may I ask your name?" The Queen started off gaining his attention. Now that they were out of the rain his blonde hair was curling upwards slowly drying off.

"Lucas," he mumbled not looking at the royal. Zelda wasn't deterred though, she befriended the scary bounty hunter after all. A frightened child was easy in comparison.

"Nice to meet you Lucas, can you tell me what you're doing out here?" Zelda was rather confused how the young boy got all the way out here. Surely he wasn't a contestant in the tournament. Then again Ness was around this boy's age, and he was a talented fighter, though to Zelda the thought of any child fighting repulsed her. After sending Link to the wolves in her own world when he was so young. The thought of making a child fight was horrid to the royal.

"Ness and I came for the tournament...all those monsters showed up. Then Ness…" Lucas paused his voice shaking, Zelda quickly asked something else not wanting to force bad memories out of the young boy.

"You're from Ness' world then? Do you have psychic powers like him?" Lucas nodded, he still didn't look at Zelda.

"I'm not as strong as him though." Zelda frowned, something must have happened to Ness by the way Lucas was acting. She didn't have to ask though as Lucas kept speaking.

"Some fat guy attacked us, he had this weird gun. He was going to shoot me with it, but Ness pushed me out of the way. Now he's a statue and that guy has him, and all I did was run!" Lucas tangled his fingers in his hair while Zelda frowned. That sounded like the same man who did the same to Peach. Her eyes narrowed not liking the sound of this. Zelda doubted whatever turned Peach and Ness into statues was permanent, it must just be a way easily subdue any fighters that opposed them.

Figuring out what the villains were up to though would have to wait. Right now guilt was coming off Lucas in waves, and if Zelda knew Ness the young hero would have been happy to throw himself in front of that gun again if it meant saving a friend.

"It's okay," Zelda carefully took Lucas' hands and untangled them from his hair.

"You were frightened so you ran, its nothing to be ashamed of. I'm certain Ness would not hold it against you. We'll find Ness turn him back to normal, and we'll stop whoever this man is from doing it again." Zelda finished with an encouraging smile, and finally Lucas looked at her. Slowly, he returned the smile nodding though there was still a level of uncertainty in his eyes.

"Good, now would you mind sitting closer to the fire. You won't be saving everyone if you get sick from the rain." Lucas nodded getting up and going to the fire where Pit quickly dragged him into the conversation he was having with Kirby. Zelda froze before getting up herself hearing a familiar voice come from nowhere.

"You were always better with children Hylia." Zelda clenched her teeth, Palutena had been silent up to this point. Which had been a blessing, she didn't know why but the goddess just grated her nerves.

"That would be because even though technically you are no longer Hylia. You still have a piece of her left in you, as such you subconsciously remember all the times you wanted to throw me off a cliff." Palutena said with a laugh sensing the royal's growing frustration whenever she predicted the hylian's thoughts. Zelda glanced at the younger heroes, none of them seemed aware Palutena was speaking.

"I can be selective of who hears me, goddess after all you know."

"I take it Ness is no longer in the area." Zelda ignored everything else the goddess said, though she was slightly interested in the royal family's connection to Hylia and the goddess' connection to Palutena. Zelda was certainly not going to let the smug goddess know that.

"I already do, anyway you're right. Wario took him." Wario, so that was the fat man's name. He was no one that Zelda knew of. The Queen would surely remember someone like him in Hyrule.

"He's from Mario and Peach's world. A villain of sorts, he's usually just in it for himself though." Zelda nodded, he sounded like your average greedy villain.

"Where can we find the next closest hero?" Zelda could feel the wind shifting, the rain would let up soon. Then they would head back out, after Lucas had rested a little. Palutena paused for a moment as if searching for the closest one.

"Someone else is close by, on the outskirts of the town."

"Thank you," there was a hum from the goddess, and Zelda sighed.

"Is there something else?" Zelda could almost see the goddess grinning.

"Oh nothing, I'm just surprised Hylia. That you haven't gone running to find your girlfriend." Zelda clenched her teeth, she was trying not to let her worry for Samus overcome her better judgment.

"You've seen Samus correct? She is a lot stronger than anyone I've meet. I trust she'll be fine until we catch up to her." Samus had to be, Zelda wasn't sure what she'd do if the hunter was hurt. She purposely ignored Palutena's name for Samus, not wanting to give the goddess any satisfaction.

"Most likely comes with being a genetically modified perfect warrior, but even she has some weaknesses." Zelda wasn't sure what Palutena was trying to accomplish, because if she was trying to make Zelda worry for Samus it was working. She desperately wanted to find the hunter. The Queen didn't feel complete without Samus near. It was a feeling Zelda never experienced before. Sure the Queen cared about her friends, or Link being her only true friend before Samus, but Zelda didn't feel this clenching in her heart when she thought of Samus not being around in her life.

"That's call you love…"

"Stop, I will not be toyed with by someone I barely know." Zelda snapped before standing, indicating she was done talking to the goddess. Palutena got one last word in though before Zelda joined the younger heroes.

"Of course you never did like games Hylia." There was almost a sad note in Palutena's voice, but Zelda ignored it.

* * *

Elsewhere in Subspace Samus jumped from her ship, giving a glare to the monsters flying overheard that forced her to land. A plasma fire smoked from the vessel making the hunter's eyebrow twitched. After returning to her world from Hyrule, the hunter had spent the time before the tournament fixing the ship to be almost exactly like her old one. Work that the monsters kindly destroyed.

It was still flyable, but with the large amount of monsters about, it would be better to let it go into auto-repair mode. Checking the surrounding area she was in a forest of nothing notable. It seemed like a generic forest with strong oak trees, and soft grass covering the ground.

The hunter wasn't entirely sure what was going on. One moment the hunter was entering Subspace with her ship. Then upon flying through for a few minutes, monsters came from nowhere and began attacking the hunter's ship.

Now she took shelter in the forest letting the flying creatures pass overhead. It's wasn't that Samus couldn't take on the creatures, but her ship didn't have any defensive capabilities at the moment. Nor did Samus have auto pilot working on it yet.

It seemed evil was once again rearing its ugly mug in Subspace. Samus activated her scan visor syncing it with her ship's long range scanners. Not wasting any time Samus' first priority was to find Zelda.

Whatever was causing this could wait until Samus confirmed the royal's safety. Samus had her scanner search the area for the Queen. It was a good thing Zelda's energy was easy to find. The Triforce or whatever magical item Zelda had made her remarkably easy to track. The magic just like the fires the royal herself created burned brightly on any scanner.

As her scanners searched for the royal, Samus idly thought that she should come up with a way for Zelda to mask the energy she had. It wouldn't do for someone undesirable to go searching for her.

Samus shook her head, Zelda could take care of herself. It wasn't her duty to insure her safety. The more sarcastic side of Samus brain quipped that if it wasn't her duty to protect her why was she making it top priority to find her.

The hunter's HUD broke her out of her thoughts, the suit indicated it was picking up Zelda's signature. She didn't have an accurate map of the area, so the scans could only give her a direction.

With a direction to go to, Samus headed out. The forest was quiet not even the smallest bird was making a sound. The hunter kept her arm cannon raised, keeping an eye open for anything out of the ordinary.

The hunter was tense, this silence was unnatural. Any normal forest would be buzzing with insects, birds, various life forms. This forest seemed dead, only a slight rustling of leaves in the wind.

The silence was finally broken when a howl echoed through the forest. It was coming from up ahead, Samus sprung forward hearing more noises. Through the brush she spotted the cause of all the noise.

"Hyah!" A familiar voice yelled sword slashing across a wolf creature's thick pelt. The two remaining wolves snarled as their brother fell to the ground. The hero snapped his shield up as one sprung forward claws raised. With a quick parry the master sword was embedded in the wolf's stomach. He turned to face down the final wolf only to find Samus behind him the wolf creature lying dead under her boot.

"Metalhead!" Link grinned, he sheathed his sword approaching the hunter.

"Man you have a knack for turning up just when I could use a hand don't you?" Samus didn't verbally reply merely shrugging. While they didn't spend too much time together in Hyrule. Link despite knowing Samus could speak now, knew Samus prefered silence.

"Good to see you, I take it you weren't taking a stroll in the forest for fun either?" Samus nodded, and Link's face became serious.

"This isn't right, this forest if it weren't for the fact that it's in Subspace I'd say we were in Kokiri Woods. Those wolves are wolfos they're from Hyrule too." The hunter's eyebrow rose, that didn't seem possible. Then again Samus herself has come across the impossible many times before.

Link looked around the forest his brow furrowed. Eventually he pointed to a tree that had a small green flag tied to a high branch.

"Look that flag, there's one on a tree exactly like it outside of Kokiri Village. This is part of Kokiri Woods. What the hell is going on?" Link looked to Samus but the hunter had no answer for him. The hero sighed, unsheathing his sword.

"Well, we're not going to figure anything out here. I left the stadium and was trying to find Marth when I found this forest and got curious. You have any idea where anyone else is?" The hunter nodded tapping her helmet before pointing in the direction it said Zelda's energy signature was coming from. Link grinned, drawing his sword he spun it once in his hand before speaking again.

"Lead the way metalhead, can't believe things have gone south two years in a row." The hunter nodded, activating her scanner again the device indicating the direction Zelda was.

The two began walking through the forest, the eerie silence following the two. It wasn't long before Link decided to break the silence.

"You know, I swear Kokiri Woods isn't this creepy normally." The green clad hero paused eyes narrowing looking around in case something was amiss.

"There are usually fairies, bugs, and all kinds of animals living here. What's the point of moving an entire woods but leave everything that lives there." Samus didn't have an answer for him, staying silent leading the way through the brush.

Link kept up his idle talking, it didn't really bother Samus. The hunter was used to traveling alone, but the friendly presence was welcomed. Samus was finding after spending so much time in Hyrule she found that being alone was not as bearable as it was before.

After so long of traversing the woods Link froze mid-step. His eyes narrowed looking over to the left.

"There's something over there." Samus turned her visor in the direction Link was looking. Raising her arm cannon the hunter stepped forward. Link raised his shield putting himself in front of the hunter incase anything jumped up. The two moved forward, and Samus heard what the hero did. Soft even breathing, something alive was hiding in the greenery.

Together the heroes pushed through the woods coming upon a small clearing. In the middle of the clearing was a single tree stump. Looking at the stump Samus lowered her arm cannon. The creature sleeping on it was no threat to them.

"Yoshi!" Link lowered his weapons walking over to the sleeping dinosaur creature. The green dinosaur made small snore not awakening. Link looked over to Samus, but the hunter just shrugged in response.

"Hey wake up Yoshi!" Link gently shook him trying to rouse the dinosaur. Slowly Yoshi opened his eyes blearily, blinking at the sunlight streaming through the trees. He looked at the two heroes before him before hoping off the stump. He yawned stretching out his body then making a small noise in greeting.

"Good to see you too," Link gave Yoshi a smile, the dinosaur appeared pleased to see a friendly face. Samus was about to approach the two when she stopped mid-step. Quickly she jumped aside, the spot she once stood exploding as something fired a charged laser at her.

Spinning around Samus trained her weapon on the foolish creature that attacked her. A strange puppet like being with red eyes stood with a gun in its hands. Two others without guns ran at her, but before they made it an arrow and an egg were sent hurling at them.

Link and Yoshi dashed to Samus' side. The green clad hero sent the hunter smirk raising his sword.

"Not very smart are they? Let's show them why we're called heroes."

* * *

 _ **A.N. I'm really trying to include a healthy**_ ** _variety of the other smash characters while still focusing on Samus and Zelda. I'm also trying to stick to the characters I know well enough that I feel I can give their character justice. I'm failing horribly at it because while I have played Earthbound I've never played the Mother game with Lucas in it, so I'm going purely off what I've seen in Samsh and read from the Earthbound wiki. I'm still overall pleased with this chapter though, one day I may do a oneshot or bonus chapter further explaining Palutena's and Hylia's relationship. It probably won't happen till I finish this story, but hey that time is getting closer everyday. With that I'll see you lovely people next chapter^_^._**


	21. Return to Glory

_**A.N. I'm back again with another chapter for you lovely people. Nothing else much to say except enjoy the chapter^_^.**_

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Chapter 20

"The hunter is exiting the forest, she has allies following her." A space pirate hissed to the large form of Ridley, leader of the space pirates. The space dragon's eyes narrow a smirk coming to his jagged teeth. So strange that his archenemy traveled with others when normally she walked alone. Ridley's tail flicked, his wings ruffled itching to fly.

It felt so good to be whole again. Ridley didn't how the Master Hand came to bring him back, but Ridley wasn't going to question a good thing. The commander of the space pirates was back, and soon he would finally bring an end to his most hated enemy.

"Are we going after her?" A different pirate snarled, a comando his sworn oath to hunt the hunter. Ridley's claws clicked against the metal floor as he moved.

Ganondorf had told him guard this facility, but the dark lord must be dreaming if he thought he could command Ridley. The villain of Hyrule heard of Samus' habit of destroying whole planets on her own, and he feared she would destroy the bomb factory. Ridley wanted to laugh at Ganondorf. If there was one thing Ridley knew it was how the hunter acted. She wouldn't waste time here unless there was a reason to be here. She would go straight to the source and destroy it, rather than waste time with this factory.

The two have spent years in a deadly dance trying to destroy the other. While the hunter has been able to mutilate Ridley time and time again. The dragon has always managed to come back stronger. His fellow pirates rebuilding his mangled body again and again, each time bringing the pirate leader closer to killing his foe.

If Ridley thought such things it would be almost poetic. The monster that murdered the hunter's family was doomed to forever fight her until they both perished. Ridley didn't know what Ganon had planned for the hunter, but he did know that if anyone was destroying the hunter it was going to be him.

Ridley remembered the hunter as she was when they first met. A weak sniveling child that cried as he ripped her mother apart in front of her. So strange that in that moment he tied his own doom to the that miserable child.

The space pirate leader wanted Samus Aran to burn slowly in a terrible agony. However, she was _his._ His to destroy, his to mutilate, his to rip apart slowly and watch her bleed. Perhaps his boiling hatred was why he was able to survive being put back together so many times. Ridley refused to die as long as the hunter lived.

Whipping around Ridley grabbed the pirate by the neck lifting him off the ground. He smirked, the pirate refused to show fear to the space dragon's face like any good pirate should.

"No, I have a better plan." As soon as Master Hand brought him back. Ridley had demanded to know everything the hunter had done while he was gone. Ridley hadn't had such clarity in his mind for what felt like ages. Even though his pirates could rebuild his body each time the hunter destroyed him. A small bit of his sanity was lost making him more akin to a dog than the cunning leader he was. Master Hand seemed to be able to do what the pirates could not, and Ridley felt as strong as when he first destroyed the hunter's home world. While updating Ridley on the status of the hunter he gave Ridley a very important piece of information.

"A woman, Zelda she's important to the hunter. We're going to find her, and make her bleed." Ridley dropped the pirate to the ground. With a swish of his tail he turned walking away, the two pirates following at his heels. Ridley knew the hunter, she didn't form attachments because they always ended up dead. Usually by his own hands, he thought with a smirk.

"Then we're going to throw her at the hunter's feet, and laugh in her face." Master Hand had ordered that none of the fighters be killed for whatever reason, and Ridley would heed that order for now. It would make the hunter suffer even more knowing this Zelda suffered and still lived. Emotional torture was just as pleasing to watch as physical.

"Gather the others, we're going hunting." Ridley unfurled his wings taking flight, leaving the two pirates behind to carry out his orders. His forces were small now, thanks to the hunter. Once this was over Ridley would rebuild the pirates anew, and since it seemed like the Federation was fighting amongst themselves. It would be the perfect time to return his reign of terror to the galaxy.

Ridley left the bomb factory his wings carrying him high into the sky. He did two circles in the sky scanning the land below before he spotted his pirates exiting the base. Flying down Ridley landed in front of them. With critical eye he checked each pirate for any weakness. All seven pirate commandos stood without flinching as Ridley hovered over them. Each knew that if they even blinked those jaws would snap around their neck and throw them aside.

Satisfied with the pirates, Ridley turned around a snarl coming from his jaws.

"The pirate that brings me this scum Zelda alive gets a year's worth of rations! Alive! Not dead, if I find her corpse the pirate that did it will join her!" The commandos moved out not questioning the dragon's orders. Ridley himself stretched his wings out again and took flight.

* * *

After walking for so long Lucas felt that his nerves had finally calmed a little. It helped that Kirby was bouncing happily next to them as they moved. Pit talked to him every now again, and the angel was probably one of the most excitable people Lucas has ever met.

It also helped that Queen Zelda was leading the way. Her confidant gate lead the small group through the abandoned town. Now that Lucas wasn't gripped by panic, he could get a good look at the royal. The first thing he noticed were the very not human pointed ears she had, but Lucas quickly turned his gaze from them. It was rude to stare after all.

Zelda looked the perfect picture of what Lucas thought a Queen would look like. She had a regal air about her, and she walked with purpose without the slightest hesitation in her step. Lucas briefly wished he could walk with such confidence. Perhaps if he wasn't so weak than Ness wouldn't have been captured.

"Anyone else notice we haven't run into a monster in awhile?" Pit broke Lucas out of his thoughts with his question. Lucas looked around there were a lot less monster than earlier. Not that he was complaining he'd rather avoid a fight if he could. The young blonde looked to Zelda to see her thoughts.

The hylian's eyes were narrowed, he noticed her ears twitch as if listening for something amiss. After a moment Zelda stopped walking the others followed suit. Pit looked like he was about to say something when Zelda shouted at them to get back, and with a flourish of her hands her magic threw the younger fighters back.

Lucas landed on his back, but as he fell back an explosion rocked the ground in front of them. Quickly the blonde gathered himself standing back up. Looking to where they once stood a line of scorched earth separated them from Zelda.

There were slight scorch marks on the royal's dress, but otherwise she survived the blast. Lucas heard a loud whoosh overhead, and he looked up to see something huge circling in the sky.

He didn't get the time to get a better look at it, as out of no where several monsters jumped from the shadows. Two jumped in between the younger heroes and Zelda. While three others came from behind the younger heroes.

They wore high tech armor, but were reptilian like in nature. With guns and sabers attached to each of their wrists the monsters opened fired at the younger heroes.

Kirby was the first to act he dash forward running at one of the monsters behind them. He jumped and kicked the creature, but the monster just snarled and swung its wrist mounted saber at the pink hero. Kirby jumped back avoiding getting sliced in half. Pit had engaged the one monster with his own swords. The two were locked in a game of who would make the first mistake allowing the other to get a hit in.

None of the monsters seemed to be paying Lucas any mind. Frozen, he looked over to Zelda to see her blow one of the monsters away with a blast of magic fire. She was about to turn to do the same to the other when a large figure slammed down behind her.

If Lucas had not been afraid when he first came here, he was now. The creature behind Zelda was massive, razor sharp claws on each hand. Yellow reflective eyes bore down at the royal. Its wings stretched out showing off its massive size.

Zelda went to attack to cover her retreat away from the beast, but a long tail swung and sent Zelda flying to the side. Dazed the royal lay on the ground trying to pick herself up, but the monster left no room for recovery.

The monster picked up the royal in one of its large hands. He brought her face to its large jaws before letting out a horrid screech in the royal face.

"Lucas look out!" Lucas felt Pit grab his arm and pull him out of the way. One of the smaller monster snarled upon missing the young blonde. That snapped Lucas back into reality, but by that time it was too late.

The monster still holding Zelda flapped its massive wings it roared something at its lessers before flying high into the sky, and just like that Lucas has let another be taken because of his inability to act.

* * *

Zelda struggled against the rough claws holding her, but her movements were nothing to the massive beast that grabbed her. It growled taking them higher into the sky. The royal spared a glance down, a fall right now would surely kill her. Looking back to monster's massive teeth and evil stare it would probably be preferable.

Quickly Zelda broke her arm free from the monster's grip. It looked at her seeing she had a limb free, Zelda raised her arm about to send a blast of fire into the beast's face when suddenly she was falling. She fell dizzyingly fast, passing through clouds watching the ground get closer.

Then she stopped the monster grabbing her leg and tossing her in the air before grabbing her again.

"Stop squirming scum before I rip your arms off!" Zelda startled hearing the beast speak. She didn't expect such a monster to be sentient, however she didn't stop trying to escape his grasp. The monster let out a monstrous screech tightening his hold on Zelda.

"Who are you?" Zelda managed to get out even though it was getting difficult to breath with the creature holding her so tightly. If it were possible the creature's mouth upturned into a savage smirk.

"I am Ridley! Leader of the Space Pirates, terror of the galaxy, and also the slayer of the hunter!" Mention of a hunter got Zelda's attention, Ridley must have seen this as his smirk became even more manic. A cold feeling ran down Zelda spine when he claimed to slay the hunter.

"Good, you know the hunter. It would be a waste of time if I grabbed the wrong person." Ridley lessened his hold just a fraction, but Zelda still felt like she couldn't breath thinking Samus might have been killed by this monster. Despite the overwhelming panic creeping up on her Zelda managed to appear calm.

"Last time I check Samus was very much alive. I doubt you could even put a scratch on her." Ridley's tail whipped violently in the air in anger. He snarled glaring at the royal in his hand. That was good, it meant he hadn't defeated Samus. Already Zelda quick mind was figuring out what was going on, and she refused to be used against the hunter.

Ridley leaned in, probably to try and intimidate Zelda. Instead Zelda broke one of her hands free again, sending a blast of fire right into the beast's eye. Even a creature as monstrous as Ridley let out a screech in pain, as his eye was burned away.

Zelda was falling again this time she turned in the air looking around for anything high up she could land on. Ridley wasn't going to let her be that easily though, he swooped down to snatch up the royal again.

Before Ridley could grab her Zelda used Farore's wind propelling her upwards above Ridley. The monster paused in the air looking around for the royal. Falling back down Zelda landed on Ridley's back letting a blast of magic explode against the back of his head.

She jumped off the beast just as he whipped around swiping the air with his claws. Zelda glanced at the quickly approaching ground, her options were limited. It was either risk killing herself with the fall, or take her chances with the enraged dragon creature.

The Queen didn't get to make a choice though, Ridley came down upon her like thunder. Wrapping his claws around her neck though his large talons held nearly Zelda's entire torso as well, crushing the royal with his tight grip. He held her there letting out a vicious snarl.

"You little fucking runt!" With his other hand Ridley took a massive claw and dug it into Zelda's stomach. The Queen cringed, biting her tongue to keep from crying out in pain. Ridley's already frightening appearance was amplified now with his scorched eye socket. He smirked, getting a sick sense of pleasure from causing such pain.

Ridley looked like he was about to say something when his head twitched as if he heard something. The claw digging into Zelda's flesh was removed, and Ridley tightened his hold on Zelda's neck. The royal's world started going dark, the space dragon cutting off air from her lungs. The last thing Zelda saw was Ridley's monstrous smirk as she passed out.

* * *

When Zelda woke the first thing she became aware of was the pain assaulting her stomach. Zelda's hand came to the wound her glove quickly becoming soaked with blood.

"Zelda!" The royal blinked, looking around she was in a cage suspended in the air. It was small, bird cage like with not even enough room for Zelda to lay down in. Instead she had been slumped against the bars before waking.

"Zelda!" Zelda's ears twitched at the frantic cry. Turning her head Zelda looked over and saw another cage much like her own hanging there. Inside to the royal's shock was Peach, no longer in the statue like state Wario had taken her in.  
"Zelda are you okay?" Peach had her hands on the bars of her cage looking worriedly at the Queen. Zelda blinked to make sure she wasn't hallucinating from blood lost.

"Peach? How are you…" Peach figured out Zelda questioned before she could finish it.

"I'm not sure myself, the last thing I remember is being hit by that gun Wario had." Peach frowned, and Zelda carefully adjusted herself in the cage so she would face Peach. The ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom's face became concerned again though when she got a full view of the large amount of blood covering Zelda's midsection.

"I'm fine though, I'm more worried about you! They brought you here a couple hours ago. That looks serious…" The wound was still bleeding slightly, and Zelda winced from the pain. Focusing, the Triforce glowed brightly on her hand, and Zelda brought the hand to the wound. She sighed in relief when the wound close, it was by no means fully healed. However at least Zelda didn't have to fear dying of blood lost.

Peach watched with worried eyes from across the room. Zelda gave her a reassuring look after she removed her hand.

"I'm okay Peach, now where are we?" Though Peach looked ready to argue she conceded quickly and answered Zelda.

"I don't know I only woke up hanging here. I haven't even seen anyone except for you and the monsters that brought you here." Zelda listened with interest, standing she gripped the bars of her cage testing to see how strong they were.

"Do you know what's going on?" Zelda nodded, explaining what she knew so far, though it was still unknown what all the villains were trying to accomplish. The royal's thoughts briefly went to the young heroes that she left behind after being captured. Zelda prayed they'd be alright, at least Palutena could still guide them towards other fighters.

Looking the cage over it was solid iron, too thick to try and use a blast of fire to blow it open. She was about to ask Peach if she had any ideas when she saw something fall from the ceiling. Peach noticed it too and both royal's heads snapped up spotting a mass of black slime crawling over the ceiling.

"Oh my!" Peach covered a her mouth with her hand looking disgusted at the mass of black goop. Zelda's eyes widened watching it move acrossing the ceiling right over to her cage. It paused over her black snow falling around Zelda's cage.

Then it started slinking down the chain that held the cage up. It fell like water quickly and before Zelda could do anything she was covered in it. Darkness invaded her vision, and Zelda held her breath not wanting to inhale any of the substance.

It left as quickly as it came, falling over Zelda then falling to the ground below with a splash. When Zelda felt herself clean of the substance she looked down to see it bubbling on the ground. It bubbled and shifted on the ground much like the gunk that formed the monsters they had been fighting.

Instead of a monster forming from this puddle a familiar form began taking shape. In seconds to Zelda's horror she was staring at a mirror imagine of herself. Peach gasped too, as the dark copy opened her eyes looking up at the two.

She smirked before chuckling darkly at the two imprisoned royals.

"What in the…"

"Goddess' name?" The dark copy finished for Zelda still smirking. Zelda's eyes narrowed at the abomination before her. The copy was near exactly like her, but Zelda could see the murderous intent in her eyes.

"What sort of abomination are you?" Zelda demanded grabbing the cage's bars. The dark copy laughed again taking a few experimental steps out from under Zelda's cage.

"Have you gone blind? I'm Zelda, Queen of Hyrule." The Queen's eyes narrowed, this only seemed to further amuse the copy.

"You certainly are not!" The doppelganger smirked, flicking her hair turning away from Zelda.

"Perhaps, but I only have to keep up the ruse long enough to trick a certain hunter." Zelda's heart clenched, she wouldn't let the copy see her fear though.

"If you think Samus is going to fall for such a farce then you clearly underestimate her." Surely Samus would be able to see this horror was not her. The doppelganger looked exactly like her, and Zelda's mind began spiraling in horror that she might be able to trick Samus.

"And you are underestimating how much we have her wrapped around our finger." The copy winked before turning heel towards the metal door leading out of the room. Zelda demanded the copy return gripping her cage bars tightly. The copy paused in its stride to the door. Then in a flash of magic the doppelganger appeared outside of Zelda's cage.

Zelda's eyes widened as fire exploded against her cage, she used her own magic to protect herself. Still when the smoke faded and Zelda opened her eyes she winced, her hands burned with her gloves completely scorched falling off her hands.

Looking back she saw the door closing the sinister laugh of her doppelganger echoing in the dark room.

"Zelda are you okay!" Zelda glance at Peach who was tightly holding on to the bars of her cage watching the Queen with worried eyes. Looking over the burns they weren't too bad her magic and gloves had taken the brunt of the attack. Triforce glowing brightly Zelda removed what was left of her gloves before she healed the burns as much as she could.

"I'll be okay…" The Queen trailed off looking at the door her doppelganger left through. She had to get out of here now, Samus was in danger.

" _And you are underestimating how much we have her wrapped around our finger."_ The doppelganger's words echoed in the royal's head. Zelda wasn't completely blind to her own feelings. She deeply cared for the bounty hunter, so much that she didn't want to imagine what things would be like without her. Their time spent in Hyrule had been the happiest time in Zelda's life.

Ever since the captain had mentioned the betting pool on her relationship with Samus. The thought never left Zelda's head for long. Resting her forehead against the cold iron bars Zelda clutched the bars as if trying to will them to break. It was like a bomb going off inside the royal's head upon accepting the idea.

She loved Samus, the thought made Zelda's heart skip a beat. It should have been obvious looking back now. Samus was everything Zelda needed, a loyal friend, a confidant who never lied to her, a calming presence that could make Zelda believe they could weather anything.

At this point Zelda wasn't even worried if the hunter returned the feelings. Even if she didn't Zelda didn't want to be in a world without her metal clad companion. Magic sparking in her hands Zelda's face became determined, she had to get out of here now.

* * *

"These guys aren't very tough are they?" The Hero of Time noted as the creature his sword had slash dissolved into nothing. Samus nodded idly in agreement, firing a missile at another monster ending its life.

When the last monster dissolved Yoshi let out a yawn blinking his eyes blearily.

"Same here Yoshi, I would expect these guys to be stronger." The hero scanned the area searching for any other threats. Finding nothing he turned back to Samus who had become still her visor glowing.

Samus was on edge, her scan visor lost Zelda's energy signal. It left cold feeling in the hunter thinking Zelda might be… No, she wouldn't continue that line of thought. There were many things that could cause interference with her visor. Zelda was still alive.

The problem now was the hunter had no idea where the royal was. Her energy signature had sped off north before Samus lost it. They could continue north, but what were the chances they would catch the royal's trail.

"Hey," Link put a hand on the hunter's shoulder breaking her from her thoughts.

"I'm sure Zelda's fine, she lasted seven years on her own against Ganon after all." Samus knew the words should calm her, Zelda could take care of herself. Samus knew this, she has fought with Zelda, and knew how strong the royal was. That didn't mean Samus didn't want to make sure of it. The nagging thought in the back of her head again questioned why Zelda's safety was such a priority. Samus shook it away, she had to focus.

Samus heard Link whistle causing her to turn to see what he was looking at. They had exited what Link claimed to be part of the Kokiri Forest. Now a vast desert plain was stretched out before them. Upon turning Samus saw what the hero was looking at.

"That looks like the portal Ganon used last tournament." Samus looked at the dark mass of energy pulsing in the desert. It was far larger than the one from the last tournament taking up several miles at least.

"Samus look there's a castle not far from it." Link pointed out a large structure that stuck out in the desert. It wasn't far from the portal, maybe a few miles if that. It was then Samus noticed a dark mass moving away from the portal. Her eyes widened, it was an army of monsters marching towards the castle.

"Farore's ass that's a lot of monsters! We have to help there might be people in that castle, let's go!" Link was rushing off sword drawn before he could even see Samus' response. The hunter shook her head dashing after the hero, Yoshi following behind.

The three heroes rushed towards the castle. They had almost reached it when a blur flew overhead, and they skidded to a stop. Seconds after a voice yelled out.

"Link! Samus! Shoot it down! That thing is making the portals!" Both heroes reacted quickly, Samus spun around aiming at the strange being flying overhead. It was shrouded by green robes, but Samus clearly saw the bomb it was carrying. She fired a missile, but it weaved out of the way. Link did the same throwing his boomerang trying to knock the person off course.

Neither hero hit, but luckily their distraction opened up the opportunity for another to throw their sword high into the sky and slash the bomb free breaking it. The man landed with a thud hefting his large sword on his shoulder before turning to the heroes that aided him.

From behind them Marth ran up following him a strange creature that reminded Samus of Kirby. Yet he was blue and wore a metal mask while carrying a sword. Both Samus and Link gave the newcomers looks, but before anyone could say anything black sludge surrounded them.

Talk would come later, they were surrounded by over a dozen monsters. With five heroes though, the weak monsters never stood a chance. The small group had to make an escape even as strong as they all were it would be foolish to take on the approaching army coming from the portal.

They fled to the cliffs where they saw the mysterious robed figure fly off to. Once it was clear they weren't being followed Link was the first to speak.

"Marth, man I am glad to see you." Marth grinned running a hand through his blue hair.

"Likewise Link it seems once again this tournament has become a fight for our lives." The hero king's face was grim sheathing his sword. He briefly glanced between Link and Samus then his eyebrow rose.

"Where's Zelda?" Link shook his head frowning.

"Don't know, Samus was tracking her down, but we lost the trail." The hunter crossed her arms as Link spoke. The reminder of Zelda's still missing status only put her more on edge.

"We have more pressing issues than the other missing contestants at the moment." The metal masked creature spoke up his yellow eyes quickly glancing at the two swordsmen. His words only seemed to hit a nerve with Link though. The hero crossed his arms looking at the small sword wielder.

"Sorry I don't believe we've meet. Link, Hero of Hyrule or Hero of Time and you are…"

"Meta Knight, I hail from Dreamland." So the masked fighter was related to Kirby, or at least he was from the same world as the pink hero. The two glared at each other while the other newcomer scratch the back of his head glancing at Marth before speaking.

"Uhh nice to meet you Link, name's Ike." Link broke off from his standoff with Meta Knight to shake the swordsman's hand. After the two let go Ike turned to Samus who up to this point was standing off to the side with Yoshi. The hunter was too wrapped up trying to think where she should search for Zelda to greet the newcomers.

Link noticed Samus' distant behavior and he took a step next to the hunter grinning.

"This is Samus, don't mind her she's not much of a talker, and this here is Yoshi." The green dinosaur happily made a noise of greeting. While Samus stayed silent looking off into the distance, still attempting to get her visor to pick up the royal's trail.

"Now that we'll all introduced please tell me one of you know what in the gods' name is going on." Marth asked, before Link could answer though Meta Knight cut in.

"Master Hand is leading an army from Subspace to take control of all other realms." The Dreamland knight stated simply. Link gave him a look no doubt suspicious as to how Meta Knight knew this.

"He asked me to join his forces as he did with other villains across dimensions. I refused, and he took control of my ship the Halberd." Meta Knight explained clearly picking up on Link's suspicions.

"Master Hand is behind this, I guess we shouldn't be surprised with how last time went, but what's with this world. That castle is from my world it shouldn't be here." The blue haired swordsman spoke his arms crossed looking at the castle off in the distance now.

"Samus and I went through a forest that's from Hyrule. It's like chunks of all our worlds are being pieced together." The heroes looked to Meta Knight for an explanation, but the Dreamland knight merely shrugged.

"I do not know all their plans. Since I refused to follow them they wouldn't tell me anything." Meta Knight paused, wrapping his cape around his small body.

"I must reclaim my ship. I will not allow them to use it for their own ends." Yellow eyes narrowed behind his masked.

"All right you have fun with that Samus and I are going to go find our friend." Link gave the metal knight a mock cheerful wave before turning heel towards Samus.

"Let's go metalhead, show me those hunting skills you claim to have." Samus uncrossed her arms giving Link a nod, eager to get back to searching for Zelda.

"Wait you two we should stick together." Marth abolished walking over grabbing Link's arm keeping him from walking away with the hunter.

"You're free to come with us, but you know friends come first. Besides someone has to go with metalhead because…" The other swordsmen turned their eyes from Link to see the hunter was already moving away from them.

"Lone wolf syndrome, we're still working on that. We'll catch up to you guys." Link bolted after the hunter leaving the other sword wielders standing there with bewildered looks.

"Is he always like that?" Ike spoke up looking at Marth.

"He wasn't so friendly with Samus last time, but yes he's always like this." Marth sighed motioning for the others to follow him.

* * *

Link would be the first to admit he wasn't at the level of understanding Samus that Zelda was at. He could only make out basic emotions coming from the stoic hunter. That alone was an accomplishment since Samus always kept herself so composed. He would never understand how Zelda could make out the hunter's thoughts just from a simple motion like a shrug or shake of the head. Right now though the hero could see how tense Samus was. The hunter was worried about Zelda, perhaps even more concerned than Link.

The hero frowned, maybe worry was too simple of a word to use. Both Samus and Link knew Zelda was more than capable of looking after herself, but the hunter seemed desperate to locate her anyway.

Catching up to Samus the hunter was pausing looking out into the distance, visor glowing brightly. After a few moments the hunter's visor dimmed, and Samus shook her head.

"Still can't pick up the trail?" Link only vaguely knew of Samus' abilities, outside of blowing things up of course. He did know the hunter could track Zelda, but for whatever reason now was unable right now.

Samus shook her head glancing at Link before looking ahead again.

"Maybe we should help Meta Knight get his ship back in the meantime. If you can't track Zelda we might as well do something useful." The hunter contemplated Link's words for a moment before nodding. Link could understand the hesitation, he'd much rather be looking for Zelda and the other fighters. If what Meta Knight said was true about his ship being taken by the villains. Then it was possible the other heroes would target the ship as well. It was a longshot but perhaps Zelda was going after the ship with the other heroes already. Knowing Zelda though her first priority would be the safety of the other fighters.

It would be another minute before the others caught up. Link looked to the silent hunter's tense form.

"You okay metalhead?" The hunter tilted her head surprised at the question. She nodded her head, and Link smirked.

"Hey it doesn't take the Triforce of Wisdom to see there's something up with you." Link paused for a moment before continuing. "You're worried." He stated giving the hunter a sympathetic look. Samus didn't respond right away, and Link figured she was deciding whether or not she could remain emotionless to avoid answering.

Eventually though the hunter nodded crossing her arms not looking at the green clad hero.

"Nothing wrong with that. I'm sure wherever Zelda is she's probably worried about us too. This whole friendship thing must be new for you, but that's what we do. We worried about each other, shows that we care." Though Link was getting the feeling that Samus' feelings towards Zelda were deeper than that of friendship. He wouldn't say anything, Samus kept her emotions on lock all the time. If Link said something wrong the hunter might tighten her hold on them.

The hero recalled the day he saw his two friends in the garden before Samus left. It wasn't until he thought on it that it began to click in his mind that his two friends might be more. If someone would have proposed the idea to him a year ago. Link would have no doubt lost it at the very idea, but after spending time with the hunter and Zelda. The idea didn't bother him as long as the two were happy. The two were good for each other, so much so that even Link saw it. Zelda broke Samus out of her armored shell, and Samus gives Zelda someone who sees Zelda as herself not the Queen of Hyrule.

Samus didn't get time to respond to Link's statement as the other heroes finally had caught up to the two. Link grinned at them ignoring the conversation he had just had with Samus, knowing full well the hunter wouldn't discuss anything with the others within earshot.

"Took you guys long enough! All right Meta Knight where's your ship we've voted on it and have decided to help you take it back." Marth's eyebrow rose at Link.

"Voted? Link voting usually implies you include everyone in on it." The green clad hero grinned.

"Oh I'm sorry we didn't include the most important person here in our vote. Yoshi, what do you think?" The blue haired swordsman sighed rubbing his forehead as Link comically consulted Yoshi for his opinion.

"I find it hard to believe he saved anyone in his world." Meta Knight said dryly to Marth who sighed.

"Don't be so quick to judge, Link's probably one of the best swordsmen I know. He'd certainly give you more than a challenge." The knight from Dreamland nodded, giving a curious look to the Hero of Hyrule and the metal clad companion he traveled with. He said nothing else waiting for the others to get underway to retake his ship.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Have to say this was a fun chapter to write mostly because of a certain villain that I've been waiting to bring into the story. I love Ridley, I've been planning out his part in the story since I decided to go into Brawl. There's nothing really set in stone in the Metroid canon about him except he's the one who killed Samus' parents, so its been fun fleshing him out a bit. I find his point of view interesting to write, he wants Samus dead so badly that in my headcanon of him its basically an**_ ** _obsession._**

 ** _On a side note looking on the parts with Link and Samus I'm really pleased how their relationship has developed. I didn't originally intend to develop them this much, but I'm happy with the result. After all in the span of about twenty chapters Link went from hating Samus to being a close friend. I'm overall pleased with how all the characters have developed so far._**

 ** _And one last note with the dark Zelda copy, I know in the game its clear to us that the copy isn't the real version, but I'm taking a lot of liberties with what happens in the game. If I didn't read all the trophy entires and read the wiki I'd have no idea what was happening just from playing the game other than Nintendos heroes get together to fight Tabbu. With that I'll end this note before it gets even longerXD I'll see you guys next chapter!_**


	22. The Will to Survive

_**A.N. Whew sorry for the long delay on this one. I hit a bit of a block with this story, and I decided to take a break from it, and work on some other stuff. Now I'm refreshed though and ready to jump back in. With that enjoy the chapter^^.**_

* * *

Chapter 21

"All right so we found the ship, how are we getting on it? Not all of us can fly you know." Link dryly noted to Meta Knight as the small group watched the Halberd soar above them. It didn't take them that long to find the ship, it was kind of hard to miss. The giant metal vessel could rival some of the larger space frigates the Galactic Federation had.

"Maybe Samus could throw you up there Link." Ike suggested with a laugh, Link's eyes lite up with the idea.

"Great idea! Samus throw me!" The green clad hero jumped in front of Samus waiting on the hunter. Samus shrugged, if Link wanted to get thrown into the air only to face plant into the ground. She wasn't going to argue. She may be strong, but even she couldn't throw Link to that height.

Samus grabbed Link, but before she could even move to throw him Marth stopped her placing a hand on the arm that held Link.

"How about let's not throw each other." Samus dropped Link, the hero huffing in disappointment.

"You have a better idea Marth?" Marth paused having no idea himself. No one suggested anything until Meta Knight spoke up.

"I could carry one of you onto the ship. We only need to regain control of the ship enough to steer it. Then we can let the others aboard, and clear the rest out." The swordsmen shrugged having no better plan. While Samus watched the ship, observing it silently not really paying attention to the others.

"Who are taking then? Sorry but, no matter how strong you think you are. You're not lifting metalhead off the ground." It would be logical to take Samus, after all she was the one who took on entire planets of monsters on her own. A ship no matter the size would be child's play in comparison.

"No, you'll come with me Link. Marth, Ike, and Yoshi will wait here for us to return for them." The two swordsmen didn't look happy about getting left behind, but it was then they noticed Meta Knight didn't mention Samus in that plan.

"What about Samus….!" All three swordsmen spun around to find the hunter missing. If one could see his face one would imagine Meta Knight was smirking under his mask.

"I believe she's finding her own way onto the ship." He pointed out into the distance to the hunter who was running at speeds even Link didn't know the hunter could reach. The heroes watched as Samus ran until she was under the ship, then she jumped and shot into the air like a rocket. The next thing the heroes saw was the hunter hanging off of the bottom of the ship.

"Show off," Link crossed his arms letting out a small chuckle before looking to Metal Knight.

"All right let's go before there aren't any baddies left for us."

Up on the ship Samus grunted digging her fingers into the dent on the ship she made. After watching it she'd figured she could reach the ship with a shinespark. Getting inside the ship however was going to be a new challenge.

Holding onto the bottom of the ship with her free hand Samus charged up her arm cannon. Firing it at the hull close to her the blast weakened the steel hull that wasn't made to stand up to such an attack. Altering her cannon, Samus activated her grapple beam. Taking hold of the piece of metal she fired at. Samus yanked hard trying to rip the metal off, after a few sharp tugs the metal began to bend.

Wasting no time Samus bent the metal until she could crawl inside. Rolling into her morphball Samus rolled inside the inner hull of the ship until she found an air vent that lead her to the actual inside of the vessel.

Scanning the area Samus saw no one walking down the metal halls of the ship. Keeping her arm cannon ready, Samus began moving down the halls. Most ships control centers were at the top of the ship, so she began to search for a way up.

"Get back here runt!" A voice yelled out, a loud bang resonated through the ship. Footsteps were rushing towards Samus, she readied her arm cannon. The familiar sound of plasma fire resonated, making Samus' eyes narrow. Sure enough two space pirates came barreling down the hall.

What the pirate's chased made the hunter's blood boil though. Zelda dodged plasma fire coming from the pirates weapon's as she ran down the hall. Acting quickly Samus rolled into her morphball zooming past the three until she was right behind the pirates.

"Shit! The hunter!" The one screeched as Samus grabbed him crushing his skull against the ship's wall before firing a missile at the other one. Samus kicked the limp body of the pirate aside turning to face the royal, her gaze softened.

"Samus!" The royal appeared shock to see the hunter, but quickly she threw her arms around the hunter's frame.

"Thank goodness you're alright." The royal mumbled holding onto the hunter tightly. Samus returned the hug, her nerves finally calming upon having Zelda safe.

"You okay?" Samus asked, once the two separated. Looking the royal over she appeared fine, but for some reason Samus' scan visor was not able to scan her. The device came up with the same message of unable to gather any readings on the royal. It was Zelda though, and Samus wouldn't be surprised if her strange magic sent Samus' scanners for a loop.

"Fine, though it seems once again this tournament has proven to be a death trap. If we survive this I don't think I'd like returning." The royal crossed her arms looking displeased at recent events, and Samus tilted her head slightly. It was odd usually she would expect Zelda to be more concern about what was going on. It was usually Link making the smart remarks, she brushed it off though.

The hunter turned, gesturing down the hall telling the royal they shouldn't linger here. To Samus' surprise Zelda gave her a blank look as if not understanding her. That was certainly strange, Zelda always knew what Samus was trying to say without actually speaking. Something was wrong here.

Again Samus tried to scan the royal, but her HUD's attempts to scan her told her it was unable to scan the royal. Looking at the royal again, she seemed well, not a single hair at of place. Same stunning dress the royal always wore. She was wearing her hair as the royal always did, her golden tiara shining brightly even in the dim ship lights. The hunter did spot something off though, the earrings that Samus gave to Zelda were missing. Odd because since the hunter gave them to her she has never seen the royal without them. It was then Samus caught sight of the royal's eyes.

This was not Zelda. Zelda's eyes were warm pools of a gentle blue that never looked at anyone with anything but kindness. The woman standing before eyes were dark, none of the normal kindness that oozed off the royal.

The hunter's eyes narrowed, the logical part of her mind told her she could play along with this farce. She could find out potentially important information, but the logical part of her mind was going on deaf ears currently.

All that was going through Samus' mind now was where was the real Zelda. The fake looked like she was about to say something after Samus had spent several moments silent without moving. Then the hunter snapped grabbing the fake by the collar lifting her off the ground.

"Samus! What are…"

"You're not Zelda." The fake's eyes widened before narrowing a malicious smirk appearing on her face.

"And you're not as easy to fool as I thought." The doppelganger raised a hand blasting magic fire right into the hunter's face. Samus stumbled slightly not expecting the fake to be able to mimic Zelda's magic. The double managed to break free from Samus' grasp, and she jumped back sending another blast of magic at the hunter.

Samus grunted the fire dropping the energy on her suit considerably. Samus fired several energy shots, but the doppelganger easily dodged out of the way. The hunter's eyes narrowed, the real Zelda couldn't move with such speed. This creature could mirror Zelda's shape, but it clearly stronger than the form it took.

"You know if you had just played along just a little longer. I might have given you a kiss before slitting your throat." The fake laughed dodging a missile Samus sent its way. Ranged attacks were getting her nowhere, so the hunter charged the double. Swinging her arm cannon Samus tried hitting the fake, but it was almost like it was made of water. It always seemed to flow out of the way of Samus' strikes.

Before Samus could think of a new strategy she heard hurried steps approaching. Down the hall four space pirates were approaching from behind her. Samus looked back to the fake who smirked fire sparking in her hands.

* * *

Link slashed the monster down the creature dissolving into black sludge as it fell. The green clad hero looked over to see Meta Knight impaling his sword into the head of a space pirate. Space pirates, Link hadn't forgotten about the monsters that attacked him last tournament. He wasn't too surprised to see them allied with Master Hand's monsters, but still it didn't bode well to see them aboard the ship.

At least Link was sure Samus was probably having a field day cutting the pirates down. The two heroes didn't bother looking for where the hunter entered, as they were both confident she could take care of herself.

The two were moving quickly through the ship clearing out any enemies that got in their way. The ship was vast, and Link was glad Meta Knight was there to guide the way. The hero was sure he would be lost by now if he was just exploring the ship on his own.

A large bang sounded out the whole ship shuddered and groaned. Link stumbled catching himself before he fell. Meta Knight's cape became wings and he flapped them to regain his own balance.

"What in Farore's name was that!" A worrying thought came to Link that the hunter may have run into trouble, but he pushed it away. He was about to keep moving when a warm feeling in his hand stopped him cold. Looking at his sword hand the Triforce was glowing brightly on the back of his hand, and that could only mean one thing. Either Ganon or Zelda was near, and since Link didn't feel the dark lord's presence. It had to be Zelda.

"Meta Knight wait, I have to look around, a friend of mine is nearby." The knight from Dreamland gave Link a look, but he stopped from rushing down the hall, giving the hero a chance to search. Link held out his hand the Triforce glowing, Link took a few steps watching the power shine brightly on his hand. When it didn't dim he continued, letting the Triforce lead him to the other piece that was nearby.

There was another bang and the ship shook again. Meta Knight gave him a look that told him to hurry. The Triforce guided him to a sealed steel door. It shone brightly telling the hero that the one he seeked was behind this door.

Link took the master sword shoving it in the crease in the door. He began to try and pry it open.

"Can't you open this?" Link grunted, slowly prying the door open. Meta knight shook his head sheathing his sword. He grabbed one of the sides of the door pulling it open.

Eventually the automatic door couldn't handle the strain anymore, and it slide open. Rushing inside Link let a grin come to his face.

"Zelda, Peach!" The two royals were suspended in cages hanging from the ceiling. The hylian royal immediately perked up upon seeing Link, but the hero could still spot the blood stains on her dress.

"Link! Thank the goddesses! You have to get us down now Samus is in danger!" Link raised an eyebrow, he wasn't surprised Zelda was worried about the hunter. Her voice sounded like she was certain there was danger coming for the hunter though.

"What you mean? Metalhead is fine she's somewhere on the ship now, probably kicking some poor pirate's face into dust." Link tried to soothe his friend's worries, but his words only seemed to upset Zelda furthered.

"I'll explain on the way just get us down now! We have to get to her!" Link shrugged, looking to Meta Knight the knight nodded. Using his wings the knight flew up to the cages his sword slashing through the chains that held them in the air. With a few quick swipes from the master sword the iron bars were no more freeing the two royals.

Zelda was rushing out the door as soon as she was free of the cage. Link gave a glance to Peach who only returned a worried look before the three went chasing after the Queen. The ship shook once again a loud groan of metal echoing throughout the building.

* * *

Samus threw the pirate off her, but it was too late the Zelda doppelganger already sent another blast of magic hurling at her. The hunter's back slammed against the wall from the force.

"Ha! And to think Ganondorf was worried you'd be a threat. Master Tabuu was right all along about you." The copy laughed snapping her fingers sending another blast of fire at Samus. The hunter quickly switched to morphball form rolling out of the way before reforming sending a missile flying at the double. Unfortunately the copy had the pirates on her side, and one of the reptilian monsters jumped in front of the missile taking the hit.

Samus blocked a different pirate who rushed at her saber raised ready to slash the hunter apart. With a swift kick then a missile the monster was thrown back slamming against the closest wall. Dispatching the pirate nearly cost Samus another blast of magic, she just barely jumped back avoiding the explosion of fire.

"Why are you still fighting? It's obvious you're going to lose eventually, so what's the point?" The copy taunted dodging out of the way from Samus as she sprung forward trying to bash her arm cannon into the copy's body.

"Everyone you care for is dead anyway. What was that man's name that was your commanding officer?" The fake Zelda put her chin in her hand in a mock thinking pose before snapping her fingers.

"Adam! He must be rolling in his grave seeing the person he sacrificed himself for become such a failure!" Samus felt something snap in anger, but she quickly regained control getting rid of yet another pirate that came to interrupt the fighting. While Samus continued fighting the pirates dodging blasts of magic, the double continued to laugh. Anger was still boiling inside her, only years of training to control her emotions kept the hunter from snaping.

"And the Chozo, their greatest weapon still carrying out a long dead race's commands. You should have perished with the rest of them!" Samus flaunter for a second upon hearing the name of her long passed family. It wasn't much, but it was enough for her to get the full force of a blast of fire coming from the false royal's hands.

Samus grunted pulling herself back up, how the creature knew so much about her past she wasn't sure. It was clear the double was trying to get a rise out of her. It angered the hunter to hear such a vile creature speak ill of people she once knew, but she couldn't let it control her actions.

"I wonder how long until her majesty joins the ranks of those that died because of you." Samus roughly grabbed a pirate throwing it into two others rushing down the hall. The monsters cried out in agony as Samus fired a super missile at them to end their life. It seemed the pirate numbers had thinned enough that Samus had some time to focus on the doppelganger.

Despite the pirates being gone for the moment the copy was smirking.

"We both know she's going to die, and it's going to be your fault." Samus clenched her fist, raising her canon several energy shots went hurling at the copy. Magic enveloped her and the projectiles bounced away harmlessly.

"Such a shame really, you know she loved you right?" Samus was charging the double when the copy cockly spoke those words. The next thing Samus knew a foot was kicking her visor using the moment to jump away the double had changed into Sheik, though the evil gaze was just as prevalent as the other form. Samus tried to ignore the doppelganger's words, but as soon as she utter the idea that Zelda might love her the hunter faltered. The double smirked fire exploding between them.

"You definitely have the emotional range of a teaspoon if you didn't notice, or…." The double jumped back avoiding a charged shot careening towards her. Samus was still trying to hit her but her blows were becoming sloppy for the hunter. Anger was bubbling within the hunter, and she felt her suit responding to the intense emotions coming off her. The suit only worked if Samus remained calm, and level headed.

"...Or maybe you love her. Oh that'd be hilarious!" Finally Samus' boot made contact with the double's gut slamming the woman into the nearest wall. Samus didn't let up grabbing the doubles' collar pulling them back and slamming them against the wall again. The double had shifted back to Zelda, as Samus charged up her arm cannon to deliver a final blow. The double gaze at the hunter.

"Samus," The copy muttered, and for a split second Samus forgot she was fighting a fake. All the hunter saw before her was Zelda in pain, and she was the one causing it. In that second Samus heard a click and then something was flying towards them. Samus turned just in time to see the missile a pirate fired straight at her.

When the smoke cleared Samus grunted, lifting herself off the ground. She didn't get the chance though, a blast of magic fire exploded and Samus was thrown to the ground again. Samus mentally cursed, she's been through worse than this. She had to survive.

"Such a sad being, just die and join the rest of your dead race in whatever you consider an afterlife." A snap then fire and missile were hurled at the hunter. Samus' HUD was flashing warning the hunter she had only a small amount of energy left. Using the wall Samus pulled herself up, but as she turned to face her enemies she saw a flash and the double was in Sheik form again. This time they threw something on the ground, and with a great flash Samus wasn't able to see the two pirates jump at her sabers raised.

The one Samus reacted quickly enough to blast them away, but Samus let out a short grunt as the remaining pirate's saber broke through her armor impaling the hunter's chest. With her suit's energy so low the pirate's saber managed to pierce the armor.

Samus fired a missile quickly dislodging the pirate from her. The only problem then was without the saber blood freely gushed out of the wound. An explosion of fire slammed the hunter against the wall, and the double grabbed her helmet jerking it up quickly dragging a throwing knife across the hunter's less armored throat. Samus was panting tasting the familiar metallic tinge of blood, mentally trying to tell herself to keep moving. The copy's words echoed in her head.

" _Just die and join the rest of your dead race."_

* * *

"So there's a fake you running around the ship! Great just great!" Link cried out trying to keep up with the royal. Zelda's heart was beating fast barely noticing the ground she was covering her only concern was finding Samus. She wouldn't let that abomination take the hunter away from her.

The ship shook violently only adding to the royal's worry. The small group of Zelda, Peach, Meta Knight, and Link hurried through the halls. As they moved signs of a fight were becoming apparent. Space pirate corpses were beginning to litter the halls, clearly Samus had been through here.

Zelda's ears twitched hearing a familiar sound, the sound of her own magic snapping in the air creating fire. The Queen quickened her pace ignoring the burning in her lungs. They were getting closer, more corpses lay dead in the halls, and Zelda heard Meta Knight mutter something about cleaning up the mess later.

"Are you finally done?" Zelda heard a cold voice question, rounding a corner for the first time Zelda felt herself become completely enraged at the site before her. The doppelganger stood above Samus who was hunched over against the wall clearly injured. Triforce glowing, fire that mirrored the royal's anger stormed down the hall enveloping the copy. The fake Zelda screamed in agony as her body burned, and the flames dispersed the charred mirror imagine of herself would have disturbed Zelda if she wasn't so angry at this point.

The burnt double laughed sinisterly its charred face grinning at Zelda before it began to dissolve into black sludge it came from. Instead of disappearing completely though the sludge moved on the ground.

Both Zelda and Peach realized quickly what the creature was doing, but the sludge was already covering the hunter's prone body before anyone could stop it. Just like when the sludge copied Zelda it coated the hunter's body before slinking off sliding back onto the floor. Within seconds an almost exact copy of fully armored Samus Aran was standing before the heroes. Unlike with Zelda the creature didn't have the time to fully copy the hunter, and the fake wasn't perfect. Blotches of black sludge seeped from the armor and the colors weren't right, sporting shades of black and purple instead of red and orange.

The creature's hollow laugh echoed through the halls. It raised its arm cannon dark energy charging in the chamber.

* * *

Samus could hear explosions but they seemed far away. It felt like she was underwater everything was happening so slowly. She could hear her heartbeat slowly thumping in her chest, and her short breaths seemed to be the only thing that told Samus she was even still alive.

Or maybe she wasn't, and this was just the world punishing her for even believing she could be happy. The copy said Zelda loved her, Samus didn't want to believe that was true. How could such a wonderful person like Zelda care about her, a dangerous, cold hearted machine. Love was an echo the hunter barely remembered. She'd loved her chozo family deeply, and Adam and her allies in the Federation were as close to friends Samus ever had.

Samus never felt such pure happiness with any of them that she got when being with Zelda. If that was love then Samus could admit she loved Zelda more than anything. If the hunter could she would have laughed. It seemed to be a recurring theme in her life that she never got the chance to tell the ones she cared about how much they meant to her.

The chozo were wiped out before Samus could tell them how grateful she was they took her in as family. She was too stubborn and still hurting too much as a child to ever say it. Adam sacrificed himself for her believing in her to continue to do what was right in the galaxy. The few friends she had Anthony Higgs, Rundas, and the other hunters all of them gone.

No, she wouldn't let it end like this. The hunter had survived far worse, this wouldn't be her end. The copy's words were just words, even if they were true Samus wouldn't let herself die just yet. Even if Zelda only cared for her as a friend Samus could live with that. To be able to have the royal in her life was enough to make Samus want to live that life.

The pain came like a drop of water in a pond, her chest burned and she felt herself cough blood. It didn't matter though Samus opened her eyes.

* * *

"This is bad!" Link shouted as he covered Meta Knight with his shield protecting the two from a volley of missiles coming from the dark hunter.

"Zelda please tell me Samus has some secret weakness she's shared with you!" The hero yelled to the hylian royal who was protecting herself with her magic. No doubt he remembered how his last fight with the hunter went, and that was when he was fighting the more merciful real Samus. Zelda frowned, she did know of a few weaknesses Samus had from sparring with her. However most utilized the hunter's blind spot from having such bulky armor. Useless in a narrow hallway they were in.

The heroes couldn't get close enough to the hunter without getting blasted, and Zelda couldn't risk another blast of magic fire with Samus' prone form next to the doppelganger. The real Samus was the only thing going through Zelda's mind. She could see blood, and the hunter's armor lights were a bright red instead of their normal green.

When Zelda was about to chance sending a blast of magic at the creature she saw Samus twitch. The creature copying her didn't notice the movement, already believing the hunter dead. A familiar visor turned slightly towards Zelda. The two stared at each other before Zelda nodded.

Another projectile went hurtling towards the royal, but this time when she reflected it away. The false hunter didn't get a chance to fire another one. Samus sprung up grabbing the fake firing several energy shots right into their head. Then with a jerk the hunter forced the fake's arm cannon to point away from the other heroes.

Link and Meta Knight didn't waste the opportunity. They rushed forward and soon two swords jutted out the fake hunter's back. A gasp of air was released from the fake, and soon they began to fall apart, black sludge blowing away disappearing into the air.

Even though they were slowly dissolving away the fake still let out a laugh.

"You think you've won, your worlds are imperfect. Master Tabuu will bring perfection whether you accept it or not." Zelda would have let out a sigh of relief as the creature disappeared, but any relief was short lived. Samus collapsed to one knee upon the creature's fall. Zelda was by her side in seconds crossing the distance between them and sliding to the floor to kneel next to the hunter.

The hunter had her one hand over her chest where a sizable hole in the armor leaked with blood. Even worse blood coated the hunter's throat where something had slashed through the less thick black armor covering it. Despite this the hunter's visor was glowing looking at Zelda.

"You okay?" The words were choked out barely audible, but Zelda glared at the hunter. Hands glowing she gently lifted the hunter's helmet placing one hand over the wound on her neck.

"I swear to the goddesses, if you ever scare me like that again Samus Aran I'll…" Zelda was shaking, through her magic she could feel how weak Samus' heartbeat was. If it wasn't Samus there would be no doubt that she would be dead within seconds. The hand covering Samus neck wound shook, she almost lost her. The reality of it was all too apparent looking at the hunter injured so. The Queen didn't notice the tears running down her cheeks, or that Peach had ushered the swordsmen away ordering them to continue clearing the ship. The Princess herself keeping a respectful distance, but still close enough to help if they needed it.

Zelda felt the neck wound finally stop bleeding. She couldn't get it to fully close, but at least blood lost wouldn't take the hunter. She went to move her hand to the hunter's chest, but a metal hand took her's. Zelda was about to abolished the hunter telling her she needed to help her, but the hunter's grip was gentle but firm demanding Zelda's attention.

"Sorry," leave it to Samus to hold off getting a serious injury healed just to say she was sorry. The hunter gently squeezed Zelda's hand showing her she was alright, but Zelda didn't feel reassured. She pulled her hand away tapping the helmet to show she wanted Samus to take it off. There was a hiss of air then Zelda helped Samus pull the helmet off. The hunter was pale from blood lost, but otherwise appeared much the same she did when she left Hyrule.

Zelda cupped the hunter's cheek making sure her gaze was on Zelda. It was of course, even with Zelda's gentle hands holding Samus' face.

"I can't lose you Samus. I know danger and fighting is a big part of your life, but promise me you'll come back. You mean too much to me I…" Then without thinking Zelda leaned in and kissed Samus. In retrospect the taste of blood did not leave one thinking of a memorable first kiss, but it didn't matter because after a second of shock the hunter returned it. Her free hand wrapping around Zelda's waist holding the royal close.

When the two separated Zelda blushed realizing what she did, but she wasn't about to regret it.

"I love you," Zelda spoke first feeling like a great weight was lifted off her shoulders upon saying those words out loud to the hunter. Samus looked like she was about to say something when she cough instead covering her mouth with her hand. Zelda could see flecks of blood, the neck wound would definitely needed more care. Before Zelda could try to help her Samus dematerialized her arm cannon in order to sign something.

The hunter pointed at herself, crossed her arms over her heart then pointed at the royal a happy smile on her face.

" _I love you,"_ There was a paused as Zelda realized what Samus just signed to her. Then the royal was smiling, she threw her arms around the hunter holding her close. Zelda let out a small noise of surprise when Samus stood abruptly lifting the royal off the ground twirling her in the air.

"Samus put me down you're still hurt!" Zelda was close to laughing despite being worried for the hunter's health. Grinning the hunter placed Zelda back down, leaning down she placed a gentle kiss on Zelda's forehead.

"Feel better than ever," the hunter's horse words said otherwise. However there was something different about her Zelda noticed. Samus eyes once dull from the horrors she had seen were bright now. If one looked close enough they could still see the darkness that haunted her, but Samus looked at Zelda with a happiness that Zelda has never seen in the hunter before. What Zelda didn't see was she was looking at the hunter in the exact same way, and it didn't matter. This time nothing was going to tear them apart not even the proclaimed Master Tabuu.

* * *

 _ **A.N. About twenty-one chapters later these two finally admit they love each other woo! This chapter was another fun one to write, originally I did plan on having the fake Zelda be able to fool Samus long enough to get a crippling hit on her. After mulling it over it just didn't fit right, because Samus is the kind of person that would have every single one of Zelda mannerisms**_ ** _memorized. In the end I'm very satisfied with this chapter now all that's left is to kick Tabbu's ass and then happy ending for everyoneXD. Anyway see you guys next chapter!_**


	23. Error in System

_**A.N. Whew, sorry for the long wait guys, I just transferred colleges to one where I actually live on campus instead of commuting. So to say the least I've been busy, but I finally found some time in between classwork to edit up this chapter and finally give you lovely people something. With that enjoy^^!**_

* * *

Chapter 22

Despite Samus claiming to feel better than ever soon after putting Zelda down the hunter began to collapse again hand going over the sizable hole in her armor. Zelda immediately helped the hunter lean against the wall while she looked at the wound. Whatever stabbed the hunter must have missed any major organs, or else the hunter might not be standing right now.

It took a few moments, but Zelda managed to stop the wound from bleeding further. If circumstances were different she would demand the hunter rest, but that was a luxury neither of them could afford right now. The ship shook, a loud rumbling echoing through the hull.

Samus put her helmet back on, the lights on the armor returning to their normal green coloring. Which Zelda took as a sign the hunter's life wasn't in immediate danger. The hunter straightened up, and if it wasn't for the obvious damage to the armor and blood. One would think she was absolutely fine. The hunter looked at Zelda and gave her a nod showing she was ready to go.

The ship gave another loud groan as the two made their way through the ship to catch up with the other fighters. Peach had already left the two sensing the other needed help.

The halls were mostly clear of pirates now, the other three fighters making sure it was clear for when the former teammates made their way through.

Eventually they made it to the outer hull of the ship, and it became clear why the ship continued to shake and groan. The other three fighters were dodging blasts of plasma fire coming from the sky.

Leaving the inside of the ship Zelda's heart clenched looking up in the sky to see the dark dragon like leader of the space pirates circling above. Ridley flew high above far out of the swordsmen and Peach's reach, raining plasma fire down upon them from his great maw.

"Why don't you come down here and do that you overgrown lizalfos!" Link shouted dodging out of the way before he was burned alive. Ridley let out a roar circling above avoiding any range attacks the hero could throw at him. Zelda looked to Samus to see if the hunter had a plan since the monster was from her realm. The hunter didn't return the look though, her visor was trained on the pirate leader circling above.

The pirate leader circled again, and this time he caught sight of the hunter. Their eyes locked and Ridley let out a vicious roar.

"HUNTER!" Ridley came barreling down from the sky, landing on the ship with a bang. He whipped his tail around keeping Link and Meta Knight from charging in with their swords.

"Surprised?" The pirate leader smirked his eyes never leaving Samus. The hunter didn't waste time sending a missile flying at the beast, but the pirate leader let out a blast of plasma from his mouth stopping the missile from reaching its target. There was a pause and then Ridley sprung into the air again rushing forward straight at them.

Zelda jumped to the side out of the way while Samus rolled into morphball avoiding Ridley as he slammed into the ship. He let out a vicious screech whipping around to face the hunter. Energy charged in the creature's maw, but before he let it loose. Ridley turned his head changing his target at the last second. A blast of plasma fire came hurling at the hylian royal.

Using Farore's wind Zelda teleported away, the plasma burning a small melted hole in the ship's hull instead. Ridley jumped into the air attempting to intercept the royal midair, but a boomerang hit him square in the face. Then several missiles exploded around the pirate leader. Followed up by Meta Knight's sword slashing Ridley's back. Roaring in pain, the pirate leader flapped his wings forcing Meta Knight back. Glancing around the space dragon saw his mistake getting close. Alone he may have a chance against Samus but the hunter was far from alone right now.

Flapping his wings again the pirate leader began to fly up high in order to retreat. He let out a loud screech though when the hunter's grapple beam took hold of his leg. Soon after he felt a chain wrap around his other leg, and Ridley saw Sheik standing next to Samus helping her keep the dragon from running away. Link pulled out a bomb lobbing it at the pirate. The primitive explosive blowing up fairly close to Ridley, not enough to hurt him though.

"Pull him closer!" The green clad hero shouted pulling out another bomb. There was a sharp tug, and the former teammates slowly began to pull the pirate leader back towards the ship. Ridley's eyes narrowed letting out a blast of plasma fire he didn't aim directly at the two. Only close enough to allow him to knock them off their feet, and drag them off the ship and into the air with him.

Sheik didn't have time to let go of her chain before they were already too far up for her to fall safely. The sheikah looked over to Samus who kept her grapple beam connected either to not to let the dragon escape or because Sheik herself was stilled tied to the beast.

Ridley quickly rose higher into the air roughly shaking his body to try to get the two off.

"Hate to cut this short, but I don't give free rides!" Smirking the space dragon ceased climbing high, and he reached down grabbing the chain wrapped around his leg. Bringing it up to his jaws the chain broke, shattered links scattering everywhere.

The next thing Sheik knew she was falling the world passing by dizzily fast. Thinking fast Sheik tried to focus, looking the ship was a fair distance away. However even if Sheik could land on it, it was highly possible she would break several bones in her body.

Sheik startled feeling something wrap around her arm, but it was a familiar cool metal. The hunter must have let go of Ridley as soon Sheik began falling. Looking at the damaged suit the sheikah knew that even Samus wouldn't be able to break their fall enough to save them both. A glare told the hunter if she even dare try to sacrifice herself for the royal's sake she would be in for it, even in death.

Quickly scanning the air, the ground was approaching terrifyingly fast. It was then Sheik spotted their chance, not to far from them a portal was opened flickering in the air under them. As if the very world had a tear in it. Palutena had said the worlds were becoming increasingly unstable, it was to be expected that portals like the one that brought Samus to Hyrule would be opening up everywhere. There was no way to tell where the portal would take them, but it was better than taking a chance falling to the ground.

Apparently Samus had seen the portal too, quickly the hunter adjusted herself in the air wrapping her arms around Sheik. The sheikah shifted back into Zelda, snapping her fingers a blast of fire spawned next to them. Zelda held onto Samus as the blast gave them the momentum to get close to the portal. With a rush of air Subspace disappeared the two falling through the portal.

* * *

"Squirtle use water gun!" The young boy shouted, adjusting his hat he watched as the blue turtle pokemon let out a blast of water sending the purple creature flying. Squirtle let out a cry of triumph running back to his training jumping into the boy's arms.

"Good job Squirtle, you sure showed them!" The pokemon trainer, also known as Red sat his excitable pokemon back down. While he wasn't completely sure what was going on at this tournament he was certain of one thing. During a fight with some of these sludge born creatures, his two other pokemon were stolen from his belt. Red wasn't going to rest until he had rescued his beloved friends.

He was on the outskirts of an abandoned town trying to follow the trail of the monsters that took his pokemon. Red looked at Squirtle who was keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.

"Lucas look! It's one of the other fighter!" Red spun around towards the voice that just called out. Racing towards him was what looked like a boy around his age with...wings? Behind him was another kid with curly blonde hair, and running with him was what Red could only describe as the strangest jigglypuff he's ever seen.

Squirtle stepped defensively in front of his trainer eyes narrowing. The small group stopped upon reaching him, and Red relaxed a little seeing the friendly grin the winged boy sported.

"Whew! We almost didn't catch up to you! I'm Pit nice to meet you! You're new to the tournament right?" Red blinked at Pit's cheerful greeting, but he shook his confusion away nodding.

"Ya, is this normal for the tournament?" Pit gave him a bashful grin shaking his head.

"Uhh no, all our worlds are actually in pretty big danger right now, but that's why we're trying to get everyone back together so we can kick some bad guy butt!" As if to prove his point the angel boy gave the air a few punches before grinning widely. Red frowned as Pit went on to explain what really was going on. How the villains across dimensions were united in tearing apart all their worlds. Red gulped hoping everything was alright back in Kanto. He left most of his pokemon back home. Now Red was regretting that decision, he could really use his other pokemon's strength right about now.

When Pit finished explaining it was then that the blonde boy decided to speak up, his voice was soft and uncertain.

"Excuse me, have you seen a tall woman wearing a fancy dress?" Red was pretty sure he hasn't seen anyone meeting that description, maybe before the tournament really began and everything went bad. After that though the only others he's seen are the monsters attacking him.

"Sorry no, are you looking for someone?" The boy looked disheartened, but Pit clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry Lucas! Lady Palutena said she sensed that Zelda is fine. I bet she showed that dragon what's what! We'll catch up to her later." His last sentence had a reassuring tone to it that Lucas made nod. Pit then jumped realizing he hadn't introduced his companions.

"Oh right sorry this here is Lucas, and the adorable little puff ball is Kirby." The pink being in question gave a friendly wave to Red. Squirtle seemed to like him returning the wave in earnest.

"We should all stick together until we find some of the other fighters. You with us Red?" Adjusting his hat Red nodded, having some company would definitely be preferable to roughing it alone.

"You bet, but I do have to find my pokemon. Some monsters stole them from me before I could stop them." Despite Red's serious tone Pit grinned.

"No worries, Lady Palutena can lead us to them no problem!" Before Red could say anything Pit was rushing off. Red blinked, glancing at the others Kirby was already running after him a smile on the pink hero's face. Lucas shrugged, moving to follow the others.

"Hey wait up! Who's Lady Palutena?"

* * *

Zelda was now certain by this point that if any of them survived this. She was never coming to Subspace again. The royal felt Samus shift under her, telling the royal that both of them were still alive. They had landed with a thud, and Zelda could feel cool metal under them. Passing through the portal must have slowed their descent enough however.

Ears twitching the sound of a dozen clicks brought Zelda back to reality. Pushing herself up Zelda looked around to see several metal clad being surrounding her, and Samus who remained lying on the ground under her prone. Zelda was quickly on her feet staring at the people around her. At least six were surrounding them, with metal armor that Zelda thought looked vaguely similar to Samus'. Though these suits were gray with blue visors and their weapons looked less advance than Samus' arm cannon.

The hunter still seemed to be getting her bearings, she must have taken the brunt of the fall. Already injured as she was Zelda would stale until the hunter could get back up.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met? I'd rather not resort to violence, so could all of you please lower your weapons." The armored beings, soldiers Zelda assumed from the matching armor looked at each other. They appeared confused by Zelda's presence even more from her calm almost friendly demeanor. Anyone who knew Zelda would know it was a false politeness. If any of these men decided to fire the royal could reflect back the projectiles easily. Not that they knew that of course, Zelda must appear very nonthreatening standing there in a dress surrounded by people covered by steel.

"Ma'am please step back there is a wanted fugitive next to you." The man trained his weapon on Samus, and Zelda's eyes narrowed. Looking around metal structures rose high in the air surrounding them, and down below a lush forest covered the ground. This must be a place in Samus' world.

"Ma'am step back, or we will use force." The one soldier commanded, aiming his gun at Zelda. Unfortunately for him Samus seemed to snap back into it just in time to see a gun aiming at Zelda. In a flash the hunter was up standing in front of the gun, metal hand gripping the weapon keeping it pointed at herself rather than Zelda.

All the soldiers seemed too shocked to do anything watching as Samus glared the soldier down. The message was clear though, don't aim their weapons at Zelda. The soldier seemed to gather his courage, though Zelda could hear him audibly swallowed inside his helmet.

"Samus Aran, you...you are under arrest by the order of the Galactic Federation of Planets….Please stand down and surrender…." He didn't get to finish because Samus shoved the soldier away the others jumped training their weapons on Samus. One behind them opened fire, but Zelda simply stepped in front of the shot using Nayru's Love to send it flying back. The man had to throw himself to the ground to avoid getting blasted by his own gun. Things may have escalated even further if the soldiers weren't so shocked that Zelda so easily dispatched the attack. Instead they stood dumbfounded at the seemingly non threatening woman glaring them down.

"We don't want to fight," Zelda said looking at the solider who was picking himself up off the ground.

"Did any of you see the portal we came out of?" Zelda questioned seeing as the soldiers were still too dumbfounded to ask anything themselves. One off to the right answered lowering his weapon.

"Of course, they've been popping up all over the place. All kinds of monsters and creatures have been coming through. We thought another one was coming through, that's why we surrounded the portal you came through Ma'am." That didn't sound good it looked like whatever force was trying to tear their dimensions apart was already succeeding in that.

"Point us to the closest portal then. We know how to put a stop to this." It wasn't a complete lie, after all Zelda was sure if they defeated whoever was causing this would end it. The problem was getting to the source of the problem. One soldier looked ready to answer Zelda when the one Samus pushed snapped at them.

"Stow it Lieutenant! We can't just let a wanted criminal go." Samus crossed her arms green visor bore into the man. He took a step back as if afraid the hunter would kill him on the spot. Another soldier spoke up though stopping any potential violence.

"You're crazy sir if you think I'm going to fight Samus Aran. The elf lady maybe, but I'm not dying today." He lowered his weapon as if to prove the point, others followed suit not wanting to pick a fight with the strongest person in their universe. Zelda smiled slightly, definitely not how she would have gotten them to lower their weapons, but Samus' intimidating reputation certainly was useful in the hunter's own world. The remaining solider still ready to pick a fight was cut short when a loud rumbling shook the metal platform they stood on.

"Shit! Another portal is opening up!" Everyone's eyes turned to a large crackling spot above them. Purple electricity crackled in the air, and the world seemed to tear open. Zelda felt Samus pick the royal up jumping out of the way before a rushing tide of water came down from above. Several of the soldiers weren't so lucky though, like a waterfall they washed the men off the metal platform their screams echoing as they fell.

There was a large thump and through the tide of water still falling a large figure made itself known. Samus jumped out of the way again as a tentacle came from the falling water lashing out at the former teammates.

Zelda could see the shadow of whatever monster hide in the water, but the beast clearly knew its chances were better if it remained hidden. Samus let Zelda back down while the hidden creature seemed to turn its attention to the remaining soldiers.

The Federation troopers hurried taking cover in one of the metal structures that was connected to the platform. Another tentacle came lashing out at them, wrapping around one of the soldiers the tentacle began thrashing around throwing the poor man in every direction.

A missile nailing the tentacle force the creature to let go with a screech coming from the water. The man went falling, but before he got too far Zelda was beside him using Farore's Wind to bring them both back to safety. The two landed next to Samus, the soldier sitting on the ground rubbing the back of his helmet.

"Uhh thanks," The soldier awkwardly thanked the royal getting back up. Zelda gave him a passive look before turning to face the monster hidden in the water.

"You and your fellows should take cover. Samus and I will handle this." Zelda didn't wait for an answer turning back to the tide of water. Up above the portal was sparkling again, and the two knew it would be closing momentarily. The last of the water fell, and finally the mystery monster revealed itself.

A Octorok, Zelda realized though far bigger than any Zelda had ever seen. Its massive size dwarfed the two fighters, and its eyes narrowed upon noticing the water stopped flowing. Its tentacles thrashed about angrily, and Samus and Zelda easily dodged out of the way. Zelda glanced at Samus whose visor was glowing brightly scanning the creature. The hunter returned the look though giving Zelda a nod. Zelda's magic sparkled in her hands, with Samus by her side her confidence renewed. The Octorok didn't stand a chance.

* * *

"Where did you go Hylia," Palutena mumbled to herself, watching the pool of water in front of her with interest. The pool reflected a scene before the goddess. It showed her an aircraft made of metal flying high in the sky. The large flying beast known as Ridley had just flown off retreating like the coward he was.

Waving her hand the water rippled, and the scene changed. Palutena's eyes narrowed looking at the fields of Hyrule, but no sign of Hylia, or Zelda as the hylian woman would no doubt remind her.

Frowning this was hopeless, there was no way she could check every dimension for them. The lines between dimensions were becoming way too thin. Already Palutena watched as Goombas and Koopa Troopers matched through Corneria. Lizalfos were ransacking the Mushroom Kingdom, and Palutena didn't want to think about the chaos the space pirates were causing.

This was bad, as a goddess herself. Palutena was trying to strengthen the barriers that kept all the dimensions separate. She was only one god though, she only had the power to keep her own dimension stable. Everywhere else tears were forming where the the dimensions were bleeding together. If this continued one by one each dimension would collapse until nothing was left.

Palutena flinched letting out a small gasp of air. Something was trying to enter her dimension, and by the way it felt it wasn't just some accidental tear. Taking a deep breath the goddess focused strengthening the barrier keeping whatever was trying to enter out.

It were times like this Palutena wished she did have the original Hylia around. The patron god of Hyrule would be useful right about now. Centuries ago even before Pit's time, Palutena had met the goddess. Back then most dimensions were still only in their humble beginnings. The Mushroom Kingdom was still just a tiny village of Toads, the Chozo flew high in the skies on their glorious wings, and Hyrule was at war the demon Demise waging battle against Hylia. One could say Hylia was one of Palutena's first friends.

While Palutena joked, she knew Zelda was not Hylia. Though Palutena could see the similarities in the royal that were reminiscent of the old goddess. Zelda was more like Hylia's child, and using that logic Palutena felt a spark of protectiveness rush through her. Hylia had been a dear friend, Palutena had argued endlessly about Hylia's foolhardy plan to renounce her god status to become mortal. She still did think it was foolish, but Palutena couldn't change the past.

Hence why she was searching for the hylian now. Zelda could be in any dimension right now. Palutena's only consolation was that Samus was with her. The chozo's prodigy child was a near unstoppable force, and Palutena doubted she would tolerate anything threatening Zelda's life. That didn't mean Palutena didn't have to find them, she knew approximately the location of all the fighters right now. Separated like this surely they would all fall they needed to stand together if they were going to stop whatever was causing all this.

This couldn't all be Master Hand's doing, the master of Subspace was powerful yes. However he did not have this level of power to tear every dimension apart. Palutena didn't know of any being in any dimension with such strength.

Palutena felt something bang on the barrier between her world and Subspace, so strong that the goddess stumbled grabbing hold of the rim of the pool to steady herself. She spun around hearing the air crackle and shift.

" **Your meddling is over**." A thousand voices came from the portal. Palutena summoned her staff and shield, she wouldn't go down without a fight.

* * *

 _ **A.N. I gave the Pokemon Trainer the name Red, one because I can't see a lot of the other smash characters not asking for his actual name, and two it'd be a pain to write him with no name and just called pokemon trainer. Nothing really else to say about this chapter again sorry for the long wait. Updates on all my stories are going to be delayed a bit at least until break. With that reviews are loved and I'll see you guys next chapter^^!**_


	24. Dimension Hopping

_**A.N. Finals week approaches and I'm uploading this instead of studying because I'm terribleXD. Anyway I've been trying my best to keep working on this while getting my class work done, but on the bright side once finals are over. I'll have more time to work on this and my other fics, so hang in there guys I'm working on it. With that enjoy the chapter!**_

* * *

Chapter 23

The octorok let out a low gurgling noise before finally falling off the platform. Both Samus and Zelda watched confirming the creature's demise before relaxing. Zelda looked to her companion noticing the lights on her suit flash to red for a moment before returning to their normal green state.

Zelda took Samus' hand taking a small comfort from the still steady metal grip. The hunter looked at Zelda as if she was about to say something, but again the familiar sound of the soldiers guns charging echoed.

"Not this again," Zelda sighed looking to the now five soldiers holding the two at gunpoint.

"You still want to push this?" Zelda's voice was more exasperated than worried. The royal knew how a fight between them would end, and Zelda didn't want to fight these men.

"I'm sorry Ma'am but command radioed us ordering the capture of Samus." It was clear by his tone that the man didn't want to fight either, but loyalty to the military won out in the end it seemed. Samus stepped protectively in front of Zelda, the battered state of her armor only made her seem more intimidating rather than show weakness.

Zelda could tell the hunter was ready to beat each soldier into the ground, but Zelda still wasn't about to let Samus waste energy on these misguided soldiers.

"This doesn't have to end in violence. Just show us where another portal is, and we'll leave." Zelda offered, still holding Samus' hand squeezing it to reassure her companion, and to keep her from taking action.

"You know exactly how this fight will end." Zelda stated, the hunter raised her arm cannon the weapon charging. A few soldiers shared a glance, Zelda continued.

"Would it really be so hard to...radio your command back and say Samus escaped?" It was going to be the end result anyway and the soldiers knew that. The one that had been speaking sighed. He lowered his weapon and the others followed suit.

"Had to try, Command has been searching desperately for you Aran." The soldier said to the hunter, Samus didn't respond keeping her weapon raised at the soldiers. The man took a few steps towards a metal structure he gestured towards it.

"There's been a pretty constant portal open this way. Only a few monsters have come through it, but otherwise it's the most stable one we've seen." The soldiers began moving out leading the way to the portal. Zelda let go of Samus' hand, holding onto the hunter's arm instead as they moved following the soldiers.

The two kept a small distance from the group of soldiers as they followed.

"You don't think they're leading us into a trap do you?" Zelda whispered to the hunter giving the soldiers a skeptical look. Zelda didn't want to assume anything about an organization she knew nothing about, but she couldn't help but be bias about the organization calling for the arrest of her...girlfriend? Zelda wasn't really sure what she considered Samus right now. They both admitted they loved each other, but they didn't really have a chance to say anything else. Zelda shook the thoughts from her head, now was not the time to let such thoughts distract her.

Samus shook her head answering Zelda's question, though the hunter's visor never left the soldiers. It was clear Samus didn't trust the men, with good reason too.

"Where are we anyway? This is your dimension, but exactly where did that portal drop us?" There was a pause from Samus, and Zelda remembered the wound marring her neck. Before she could take back the question Samus muttered out an answer.

"Norion," She didn't explain any further, either due to her injury or Samus didn't believe any other information was revelate. Zelda didn't mind of course, but she was concerned was it really a good idea to go jumping through another portal. Who knew where it would bring them next.

They didn't have much of a choice though, they couldn't abandon their friends in Subspace. Nor could they stay here, Zelda didn't like the idea of staying anywhere near the Federation.

The soldiers lead them to a corridor with several others standing around, no doubt guarding the portal. They all gave Samus wary looks as she passed, but they wouldn't engage the hunter unless they wanted to risk their life.

Just like the soldier said a portal lay open within the hall. Seeing the portal Zelda tensed, the dark purple energy cut through the air marring the space it occupied. The royal definitely didn't like the idea of putting to chance another portal, but it was either that or sit and wait here.

That certainly wasn't an option. Looking at Samus, the hunter as always showed no hesitation. Samus seemed to notice Zelda's uncertainty though and moved her arm to take Zelda's hand again. Feeling slightly better Zelda nodded, and barely paying the Federation troopers any mind the two passed through the portal.

* * *

The first thing Zelda realized upon crossing through the portal was the splashing of water and her boots filling with the liquid. When the darkness from the portal cleared, the bright light that greeted Zelda was blinding. Raising her free hand the royal blocked out the light for a moment before lowering it once her eyes adjusted.

What greeted Zelda was both amazing and terrifying at the same time. Above them was what seemed to be an ocean. Miles of water stretched upwards above them, fish of all kinds swam without a care. The water stopped though at a certain point as if some invisible force was keeping it from drowning them. Well drowning her, Samus' suit would no doubt protect the hunter.

Further investigating their surroundings Zelda gasped upon realizing what they stood in front of. A castle, not just any castle though, Hyrule castle. Some things were off about it, but Zelda wouldn't be mistaken when it came to her home. Glancing around they were standing in what was the garden, but water had flooded the area making it more like a small pond.

"How is this possible?" Zelda let go of Samus' hand walking up the steps leading out of the water looking at what was her home in utter shock. Something was off, there were slight differences in the castle's structure, and ivy and moss covered much of the castle's walls.

Samus was silent, but Zelda could hear her metal footsteps following the royal as she entered the castle. Again things were similar from the last time she was home, but some things were off. The carpet covering the stone floor was a different color than what Zelda remembers. Some of the paintings hanging from the walls Zelda knew were not in the castle last time she checked. The paintings Zelda did recognize were half rotten away, or it looked like someone torn them apart.

Could a portal have swallowed the entirety of Hyrule Castle. That didn't seem right, if a portal transported the castle under an ocean. Then what force was protecting the castle from being consumed by water. Further where was her staff the hylian wondered, Zelda cringed in fear for them. She may not know every member of her staff personally, but that didn't mean the royal didn't care for them.

Zelda's head was a whirlwind of thoughts trying to explain what was going on. It wasn't until a firm hand took her's did Zelda realize she had been rushing through the halls. Zelda blinked, it was a good thing Samus snap her out of it. There could be monsters lurking about, and being distracted would have spelt disaster.

The hunter had a reason for stopping Zelda though. Samus let go of Zelda's hand pausing for a moment before pointing at something hanging on the wall. Zelda looked and once again gasped.

A painting hung on the wall, worn and half torn still though depicted on the canvas was none other than Zelda herself. Zelda knew she did not commission anyone to paint her, taking a step closer Zelda examine the painting.

It seemed like a standard royal portrait that everyone in the royal family would have done at some point. Usually one wouldn't get it done until their rule had been cemented either by marriage or some other major event. Looking at the painting Zelda saw herself sitting on a plush seat regally. Her portrait self appeared older, slight gray hair running through her hair. There was someone else in the painting too, but the canvas was torn as if someone ripped the other person out purposely, or simply age got to the paper. All Zelda could see was the other person's gloved hand resting on her portrait self's arm.

"This is impossible, could the portal be crossing time as well as dimensions?" Zelda looked to Samus for an answer, but the hunter shrugged having none. The royal would have gone back to her musing if she didn't catch sight of the lights on the hunter's armor flashing back to red.

"Samus," Zelda was at the hunter's side in a second. Her hand went to the damaged armor, and she frowned upon fresh blood coating her fingers. The fight with the octorok must have reopened the wound.

"We need to take a moment to rest." Samus looked ready to argue, but Zelda left no room for argument. Taking Samus' arm Zelda lead them to what used to be the castle's main entrance. Now it seemed to still serve that purpose, but Zelda didn't take the time to note the differences. Getting Samus to sit down on the steps Zelda went to work trying to close the wound.

"This would be easier if you deactivated your armor. I can't properly reach the wound." After a moment of trying to get the wound to close Zelda mumbled. It wasn't a request though, it took Samus weeks in Hyrule to be comfortable enough to take off her armor. In an unknown place with a threat looming over them Zelda knew there was no way Samus was letting her guard down.

"I'll be fine," Samus grunted out, armor shifting in pain as once again Zelda managed to get the wound to stitch close. It wasn't perfect though, Zelda was sure the wound would open again if they continued fighting. Checking the gash on the hunter's neck luckily that wound remained closed. Zelda wasn't sure if even Samus could keep going after losing so much blood.

Samus' visor glowed brightly and Zelda noticed her looking over the wound on her stomach that Ridley had given her when he captured her. There was a still a dull pain, but Zelda was mostly ignoring it. The royal was beginning to feel the strain of all this fighting already though, unlike many of the other fighters. Zelda didn't constantly train or fight, her body wasn't used to this kind of strain, and while Zelda endured this kind of stuff during Ganondorf's reign in Hyrule. That was years ago and the royal didn't know how much longer her body could keep up.

The hunter stood up her visor dimming upon seeing Zelda was as good as she could be right now. Offering her hand to the royal Zelda got back as well. Before either could say anything though Zelda's ears twitched hearing the metallic click of a sword unsheathing.

"Hyahhhh!" Both heroines looked up just as a green blur jumped from the balcony above. Zelda jumped back while Samus side stepped catching the offender by their shirt's collar. A metal clang sounded out as their attacker's sword fell to the ground.

Blinking Zelda lifted an eyebrow looking at their would be attacker. It was child, currently squirming in the hunter's iron grip. What was stranger about the child he was like a mirror image of Link when he was younger. Even the same green tunic and blonde hair tucked messily under his long hat. Zelda's eyes widened looking at the child's sword.

Picking up the blade, there was no mistake. It was the legendary master sword, though Zelda could sense that it did not have the power that the master sword Link carried possessed. The sages must not be present in this world to pray and give the blade power. As Zelda could sense the sword's lack of energy.

"Let me go!" The boy brought back Zelda's attention. Samus had no issue keeping hold of him of course. His small arms doing nothing to loosen the hunter's metal clad hand holding his shirt. Samus looked at Zelda with a questioning head tilt. Zelda nodded, the boy would be no threat to them now that he was out in the open.

Samus let the boy down and he jumped kicking Samus' shin only to yelp when his boot connected to the metal armor. Still holding the master sword Zelda approached the boy. Her face wasn't harsh stern perhaps, but the boy did attack them, and the master sword even not at full power could do some major damage.

"Care to explain why you attacked us?" The boy jumped not expecting to be addressed by the royal looking woman. He took an uneasy step back, but only to stumble back into Samus. The hunter's emotionless visor watched the boy, the hunter's arms crossing. Caught between the two the boy glanced at both of them before turning his gaze back on Zelda. He looked her over confusion covering his feature. Then Zelda could see a flash of guilt come to his features as if realizing something.

"I thought you guys were Ganon's monsters…" Zelda wasn't sure if she should be insulted that she was mistaken for one of Ganon's minions, or concerned that Ganon's work was involved with this.

"We're not, how about we try this again with less sneak attacks yes?" The boy seemed to brighten at the idea nodding.

"I'm Zelda and this is my partner Samus." The hunter gave a nod in greeting and the boy smiled up at the metal warrior. Then he bashfully scratched the back of his head looking at the floor.

"Sorry I attacked you, you kinda look like a darknut. My name's Link." Zelda blinked, a boy garbed in green named Link. Now that was going to get confusing. Things began to piece together in Zelda's mind. This must be Hyrule in the future, or one of many possible outcomes. Time was a fickle thing, and even by Samus and Zelda just being here things could be changing from their original course. This boy may be a distant relative of the Link from her time. How Hyrule castle ended up underwater would have to be a mystery for another time they did have bigger problems to worry about right now. There would be no future if all dimensions were destroyed after all.

"It's quite alright Link no harm done. I have to ask you though have you seen any masses of purple energy. They're portals, Samus and I have to find one." Link thought for a moment then he nodded.

"Yep I saw one after I got the master sword, can I please have it back by the way I need it." The royal remember she was still holding the legendary blade. She raised an eyebrow wondering how a boy so young could wield the master sword. When in her time Link had to wait seven years before he was able to wield the sword. Then Zelda caught the younger Link's wording, he said he needed the sword.

"Can I ask what you need this for?" Link's face tightened, his face reminding Zelda of the Link from her time's expression whenever he became determined.

"Ganondorf took my sister I have to rescue her! King of Red Lions says the only way I can beat Ganon is with the Master Sword." Zelda wasn't sure who this King of Red Lions was, but she wondered if they knew the master sword didn't have the power to repel evil right now. Fighting Ganon now with this sword would be a suicide mission. Regardless it was clear by the boy's expression even if she withheld the weapon he would go after Ganon.

"Do be careful with this, it's not a weapon to be taken lightly." Zelda said gently, handing the sword back to the young Link. The boy nodded sheathing the sword behind his back.

"I think I saw one of those portals this way." Link pointed upstairs before hurrying off to show the partners where the portal was. The two followed after the boy wasting no time to continue their attempts at getting back to Subspace.

"Why are you guys trying to find these portals anyway? I thought they were just Ganondorf bringing more monsters to fight." The young hero asked curiously looking at the two women as they traversed the castle. Zelda explained as best she could the events that brought them here. The tournament, the instability between everyone's worlds, and the combined power of the villains following the command of some unknown being. Link seemed to accept this all in stride his eyes narrowing though when Zelda mentioned Ganon was helping with this assault.

"There it is!" Link pointed out the flickering portal brightening what used to be the library. Now cobwebs and dust coated the shelves, spiders scuttled about at the intrusion of the three heroes.

Before they could even approached the portal a table was thrown their way from the other side of the room. The wooden furniture flew at them, luckily Samus caught the piece before it could hit them. The hunter dropped the tabled, all three of them looking at the creature that threw it at them.

"It's a darknut!" Link cried out as the armored figured raised its jagged sword, red eyes narrowing under its helmet. Zelda wasted no time with a sharp wave of her hand a blast of magic fire was hurled at the knight like monster. The darknut slashed his sword through the fire deflecting it away from him.

Link charged forward, Samus firing a missile at the darknut keeping it from focusing on the young boy. Rolling under the darknut's legs Link jumped swinging the master sword upwards a snap was heard and the darknut's armor fell away.

Another missile and a blast of fire and the darknut fell, its scorched body dissolving into the air. Link blinked before he let out a whoop trotting back over to the two women.

"Wow that's so much easier with help. I've only ever seen wizzrobes use magic, can you show me how to do that?" Link was bouncing looking excitedly at Zelda. The royal gave him uncertain smile.

"Another time perhaps, we have to go. Will you be fine here on your own?" Zelda didn't like the idea of leaving the boy alone here, but if this was his world he should stay. Link didn't seem to think so though, he shook his head.

"I'm coming with you! I can't just sit here while my world and everyone else's is in danger!" Zelda could see the same determined spark that her time's Link had in the younger boy. He wasn't going to take no for an answer, and Zelda knew as soon as they crossed over the portal. Even if it closed after that he could no doubt find another to cross. Looking at Samus the hunter shrugged, Zelda huffed the hunter being of no help.

"All right stay close to us, and as soon as things get too violent run." Link grinned, excitedly dashing over to the portal only to stop just short of jumping in. He gave Zelda a sheepish look waiting for the two heroines before all three crossed through the portal.

* * *

"I think I'm going to be sick…" Zelda heard Link mumbled after they passed into a different dimension. She looked over to her companions to see Link looking a bit green, and Samus watching unsure what to do. The hunter looked at Zelda then at Link again, as if a pleading the royal to do something.

Zelda went over to the boy leaning down and placing a gentle hand on his back. The royal herself must be getting used to passing through the portals, as each time she found the process less dizzying, but Link has never passed through one. Making the process a little rougher for the young hero.

"I'm okay thanks Miss Zelda." Link brighten considerably, before his face became quizzical.

"Where are we?" Link's words echoed, Zelda looked around they seemed to be in a cave of some kind. A chill ran through the air, and Zelda shivered seeing her breath. The only light were the bright green glow of Samus' visor, and the other smaller lights on the hunter's armor.

"Any ideas Samus?" Zelda asked having no clue herself. The hunter shook her head, craning her helmet around looking at every inch of the cave.

Zelda frowned, holding out her hand a small flame spawned illuminating the cave even more. Ears twitching Zelda looked up hearing something shuffle above them. Above them a dozen bats or what appeared to be bats roosted above them. They were blue and Zelda could see no eyes at all on their small bodies.

"We should be careful, I'd rather not find out if those are poisonous." Zelda whispered noting how Link jumped upon spying the bats. Samus simply nodded, the hunter pointed to a passage indicating which direction she believed they should.

Carefully the three crept through the cave, trending softly as not to awaken anything that may lurk in the darkness. The cave was silent except for the sound of water dripping from the ceiling, and the occasional shuffling of the bats.

Eventually though that silence was broken when the small group made it to what looked like a staircase leading outside. Explosions and the sounds of fighting echoed outside. Along with a monstrous roar coming from outside.

Again they approached cautiously, Zelda peeking out of the cave along with Link. While Samus stayed a little farther back being the most noticeable of the group.

Outside a creature Zelda never seen was raging. A bipedal body with a long neck, pink highlights running down its body and tail. Two large wings extended from its back, and sharp piercing red eyes. Two pearls shined brightly on its shoulders, and the beast's claws glowed slashing through the air sending waves of energy at its opponent below.

Its opponent jumped and dodged barely avoiding the attacking monster above. The being was blue standing on two legs, it looked like a mix of a dog and a person. The dog seemed to be trying to talk to the monster above, but Zelda couldn't understand what the creature was saying. Nor did the monster above seem to care sending another blast of energy at the dog like creature.

Zelda briefly wondered if they should just ignore this battle and find another way. The thought was stopped dead at the larger monster's next action. Pearls glowing brightly the creature slashed in the air, and the world split a tear being created that a blue dragon creature flew out of. The dragon gathered energy in its maw firing it at the blue dog below.

The dog gathered energy in its paws a bright ball of energy being formed before it was flung at the dragon. The dragon veered away avoiding the attack, gathering its own energy. A bright beam of yellow energy was fired at the dog creature. There was no time for it to dodge, raising its arms it prepared to take the hit.

The attack never hit though, using Farore's wind Zelda brought herself to the dog's side. Using her magic the beam of energy was blocked away. The dragon looked surprised at the newcomer but didn't have time to process it as Samus quickly brought the dragon down with several precise shots from her arm cannon.

The dog creature looked in shock at the people coming to his aid.

"Thank you," Zelda heard a masculine voice echo in her head. She knew this it was how Mewtwo, a pokemon from the last tournament communicated. Telepathy, the dog creature must a be a pokemon Zelda realized.

Before Zelda could say anything the dog like pokemon turned its gaze to the creature angrily hovering above them.

"Palkia stop this! You're out of control you're going to tear our world apart!" The pokemon yelled at Palkia allowing what he was saying to be understood to his new found allies. Palkia still didn't seem interested in talking, gathering energy in its one hand it geared up for another attack.

Palkia drew its arm back ready to throw the wave of energy at them when a bomb came from below exploding in front of the large pokemon. Link quickly made himself scarce grinning as Palkia angrily tried to locate whoever dared attack it.

Letting out a deafening roar Palkia landed on the ground with a crash. Zelda jumped back avoiding being crushed by the enormous pokemon. While Samus rushed forward rolling into morphball she planted several bombs under Palkia while its focus was still on Zelda and the other pokemon. Palkia roared as the bombs exploded under it, Samus came out of morphball form behind Palkia. Firing several energy shots at the pokemon, keeping up the momentum Zelda sent a blast of magic fire at Palkia's front.

Palkia let out another noise, but this one was more of a wail of pain than a roar. The glowing pearls on its shoulders dimmed slightly and Palkia shuddered where it stood taking a fair amount of damage.

Before any of the heroes could continue their attack the blue pokemon stepped forward raising his paw at Palkia. Zelda felt the air shift as the dog like pokemon did something, its paw glowed blue its eyes closed. After several moments Palkia straightened back up to full height. Magic sparked in Zelda's hand, Samus readied her arm cannon and Link pulled out a bow and arrow. None of them could take action though as the pokemon spoke.

"Palkia apologizes for attacking you." Zelda blinked, processing the pokemon's words. Magic disappearing from her hand Zelda looked at the two pokemon curiously. The pokemon turned to the heroes giving a small bow.

"Thank you for your assistance, I could not have calmed Palkia alone. Allow me to introduce myself I am Lucario." Both Link and Samus lowered their weapons, though Zelda could see Samus keeping her arm cannon at her hip in case things turned violent again. The two joined Zelda in front of Lucario while the royal introduced them.

"It was no problem, I'm Zelda, this is Samus and Link." Link gave a friendly wave the hunter merely nodded. Lucario gave a short bow to both of them, then he glanced at Palkia who seemed to be saying something to him. The large pokemon was making several noises that Zelda couldn't make heads or tails of, though Lucario seemed to understand. He turned back to the heroes when Palkia went silent.

"None of you are from this world." It wasn't a question, Lucario looked at the heroes a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Yes, we're all from different worlds you see…" Zelda went on to explain the events that brought them here. Lucario's eyes narrowed at the explanation and Palkia became restless its wings fanning out the pokemon making several noises. Lucario looked up at the large pokemon listening to the various cries Palkia was making.

"That explains why Palkia went berserk. Palkia was trying to keep the barrier between our world and all of yours together, but the strain became too much. In our world Palkia is the guardian of space and dimensions." The blue pokemon explained giving Palkia a sympathetic look. The large pokemon made several noises before its wings extend lifting the pokemon into the air. Lucario nodded, turning back to the others.

"Palkia can create a portal that takes us back to Subspace." Zelda caught on to the pokemon's wording, but Link was the one to speak up about it.

"You're coming with us?" Link asked excited at the prospect, and Lucario nodded.

"My world is in just as much danger as all of yours. I will defend my home with all of my power."

With that bright glowing energy formed in Palkia's clawed hands. Both pearls on its shoulder illuminated with a stunning glow, and the spacial pokemon opened a rift in the air allowing the small group to leave this dimension.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Originally I was going to have them go through more worlds, but I didn't want the dimension hopping to last too long. This chapter was a fun one to write, fun fact I was going to have a humorous scene in this where Toon Link wouldn't understand Zelda as since she's from Hyrule from an older time she would speak the old hylian language that you hear Valoo and the Deku Tree in Wind Waker speak. That would have opened up a whole can of worms on how any of the smash contestants can understand each other, and that's not something I'm ready to come up with an explanation for. Also yes that is indeed Toon Link, but to me it wouldn't make sense for them to just outright call him Toon Link right from the start, but don't worry he'll end up being called Toon Link before they meet back up with normal Link. So don't worry about any confusion that could happen in the future. With that I will see you guys next chapter^^**_


	25. A Return or a Step Back

_**A.N. I'm back once again! Normally I'd apologize for the long update wait, but that's getting rather repetitive isn't it since I do that about every chapterXD. So instead just enjoy the chapter you lovely readers^^**_

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Chapter 24

Subspace, a place Lucario had never heard of until the small group of outsiders had come to Spear Pillar. To be honest Lucario had expected something bad when Zelda had described that their worlds were being tore apart by villains in Subspace. A calm wintery mountain was not something Lucario would have thought Subspace would include, but even still the fighting steel pokemon felt a bad feeling ripple through the aura in the air. Looking around the aura pokemon found himself on a mountain with his companions, snow falling gently from the sky. A small chill ran up from his feet that were ankle deep in snow.

"Why didn't Palkia warn us to bring a coat! It's freezing!" Lucario heard Link complain loudly, the young boy was kicking the snow away from himself. If things weren't so dire Lucario might find the sight of the boy nearly half buried in the deep snow humorous, but they had no time for this nonsense.

Samus seemed to agree with the sentiment as the hunter had offered Link a hand. Lifting him out of the snow, hoisting the boy onto her shoulders where Link gladly took hold. Easily settling in hanging onto the hunter's back his hands coming to rest on top Samus' head while his legs dangled on either side of her neck.

"Thanks Samus, sooooo we're in Subspace now? Doesn't look like much." Link noted looking around from his now high vantage point on the hunter's shoulders. Zelda stood next to Samus, Lucario noting the royal shiver unlike Link though she didn't make any mention of it.

"I've never been to this part of Subspace, Samus do you have any idea where we are?" The royal was scanning the horizon below them. Off in the distance expansive plains could be seen, and even farther Lucario could spot green perhaps a forest, and green gave way to dessert of some kind farther out. The hunter seemed to communicate with the royal through hand gestures, and while Lucario had no idea what they were saying Lucario was not idle.

The stoic pokemon took this chance to observe his new allies. Despite already having pledging his aid in saving their worlds. Lucario would not trust blindly, lucky for him he had the power of aura. In his world aura was an energy that everyone had, only some could manipulate it though. Lucario could manipulate this energy and use it to attack his foes, but he could also gauge a person by looking at their aura.

Concentrating first Lucario's mind eye was drawn to the gentle seafoam color of Link's aura. Aura manifested in different colors depending on the person, softer more gentle colors usually meant the person was generally good at heart. Harsher darker colors were what would make Lucario concerned, but Link's aura was a soft flowing seafoam color reminding Lucario much of the sea itself. The boy was young so his aura was especially bright, age and experience tended to weather one's aura. The world could be too cruel, and that bright soul could be rendered a pitiful mess easily.

Lucario sensed no ill coming off from the boy unsurprisingly, so he moved on focusing instead on the steel clad warrior under him. While Link's aura was bright, and Lucario would be able to spot it miles away. Samus' aura was a subdued red, the aura of someone who has seen the cruelties of the world first hand. Their aura still radiated with a silent strength though. Red was a violent color, it was rare to find someone with such a calm weathered red aura. He certainly hasn't seen an aura like it. The only red auras Lucario has seen, were people of less than moral character. Lucario would watch the steel warrior, they have not done anything wrong yet. He would watch however, humans could change their tune in an instance. Lucario would never understand how some pokemon freely gave their allegiance to humans when they were such fickle beings, but that was something Lucario didn't have time to think on now.

If Samus' aura was unique, then Zelda's was completely unheard of. At first glance the royal looking woman seemed normal. Her warm purple aura wasn't something Lucario hadn't seen before. Her right hand though was not right, it was a nearly blinding golden color. It wasn't right, people's aura could change color over time, but never change completely from their original hue. Samus' aura for example, Lucario could assume when they were younger it was probably a brighter more brilliant red. Auras didn't change color in this manner. It was almost like her hand was someone else's aura, and yet it was connected to her somehow. It made Lucario suspicious, the royal seemed like a kind person. Perhaps it was a farce however, she did look like a queen. Rulers were often two faced, and perhaps Zelda had managed to mutilate someone's aura and steal it. A damning accusation, but Lucario didn't know these people.

"This isn't fair! I want to be included in this secret conversation!" Link's outburst broke Lucario from his thoughts. The young boy was patting the hunter's helmet to gain their attention. Samus barely even flinched at the motions finishing the hand gesture they were making to Zelda. The royal nodded before giving a small smile to Link.

"Apologizes Link, Samus' throat is injured and she uses sign language to speak. Bear with us…" Before Zelda could continue her thought the boy's eyes had lite up.

"You can talk just by using your hands! That's so cool show me how to do it! Please!" Link was nearly vibrating with excitement. While Lucario couldn't tell what the hunter thought of his plea Zelda was quick to calm the young hero.

"Perhaps after we save the world?" she suggested patiently, it was a good thing too Lucario didn't want to waste time with their worlds in danger.

"Right! So where are we heading?" At this question Zelda clasped her hands together a small smile on her face.

"Samus has an idea where we originally started, but we're quite far…." the royal pause for a moment, Lucario noticing her pointed ears twitching. "Lucario look out!" The pokemon reacted quickly to the hylian's warning jumping he managed to dodge a large clawed paw coming down slamming into the snow instead of the pokemon. Landing next to his allies Lucario looked to see a large bear standing where he once was teeth bared and snarling.

"Is that bear wearing sunglasses?" Lucario heard Link point out, but he disregarded the boy's words. The bear roared about to charge another attack. Lucario heard Samus' arm cannon begin charging, and he heard the air sizzle from Zelda's magic. Lucario prepared to repel the beast when it charge, but he never got the chance. From above two humans had jumped down smashing twin hammers into the bear's skull.

The beast fell in a heap knocked out cold. Lucario gazed warily at the two humans, they were both wearing winter wear. A boy was wearing a blue parka, and a girl wearing a pink one. While their clothing obscured much, they couldn't be that much older than Link maybe early teen years. The boy hefted a large hammer over his shoulder while the girl rested hers on the ground keeping hold of the handle though.

"Popo! Nana!" Zelda sounded pleased so Lucario relaxed a little. These children must not be enemies at the very least. Both children smiled pleasantly turning their attention to the hylian royal who approached them.

"Miss Zelda," the two chimed in sync, they glanced at each other. The girl giggling while the boy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Are you two okay?" the royal asked concern covering her features, Samus trailed near her the steel warrior's visor glowing. Immediately both children eyes' went to the boy sitting on the warrior's shoulders.

"Hi I'm Link," he waved from his vantage point, a wide grin on his face. Lucario watched as a confused expression came to the boy's face, but the girl seemed to take the sight of the silly boy on the warrior's shoulders in stride.

"I'm Nana," the girl piped up looking ready to laugh.

"I'm Popo," the boy said, he glanced at Lucario with a curious look, but quickly the two spoke in unison once again.

"Nice to meet you," Link gave them a goofy grin clearly amused by their antics.

"We're fine though Miss Zelda, we've been clearing this mountain of monsters. They just keep popping up though." The one who called Popo spoke up a frown coming to his features when he spoke of the monsters. Zelda too frowned giving the knocked out bear a wary look.

"They're not going to stop anytime soon. Master Hand and the villains of our worlds are trying to destroy everything, or something along those lines. We're not entirely sure of their plan, but if it doesn't stop soon all our worlds are going to be in great danger." The winter clad children both startled at the grim news.

"We can't let that happen!" Nana spoke up this time, determination gleaming in her eyes as she hefted her hammer over her shoulder.

"Our thoughts exactly, you're the mountain climbing experts here. Do you know a quick way off this mountain?" Lucario's ears twitched watching the royal talk with the mountain climbers. Clearly Zelda was held in high regards with these heroes. It made Lucario wonder what other allies were with them in their quest to save their worlds. They certainly made an interesting group, they were still all humans though. Lucario's trust of humans was strained after one too many humans trying to use pokemon like Palkia for their own gain. Who's to say these humans wouldn't change their tunes at the slightest show of power.

Lucario continued his silent judgment, but soon sensed someone's eyes on him. Looking over Samus' visor was gazing at him steadily with almost the same intensity that he had been staring at the other heroes.

He could gauge nothing from that emotionless visor, and it unnerved the aura pokemon. It was so strange normally Lucario could sense danger with aura, but the metal warrior's aura was as silent as the warrior. Calm weathered red surrounded Samus giving off nothing. People's emotions reflected in their auras. Like in the way Zelda's amethyst aura surrounded the royal tensely showing the royal's worry, or Link's aura shifted restlessly around him despite the cheery grin the boy was worried.

Not wanting to think about the warrior's gaze on him Lucario looked at Popo and Nana's aura. Both held a cool blue aura that was so intertwine in one another's that Lucario could barely tell the difference between the two. Another oddity then, these people were nothing like Lucario had ever seen.

Being so wrapped in his thoughts Lucario jumped when a cold metal hand tapped his shoulder. Samus had tapped him to gain his attention. He had been so focused on trying to decipher his new allies that he hadn't noticed they were on the move once more. The ice climbers leading the group the safest route down the snowy mountain.

"Come on Lucario, we're gonna get left behind. Onward Samus!" Link announced still resting on Samus' shoulders. The metal clad warrior didn't seem to mind the boy's goofy order, and gave Lucario one last glance before moving to follow the others.

Lucario let out a breath of air he didn't realise he had been holding. Swallowing the aura pokemon followed his companions as well. He may not fully trust them yet, but if they had any hope of defeating their foes then cooperation was necessary. Gazing down at the world below the mountain even from here Lucario could see tears in space marring the landscape. Whatever monsters would face the full might of Lucario's power if they wished to continue to endanger the world as they were.

* * *

"The hunter will die by my hands and my hands alone! Stay out of our duel to the death you miserable troll!" Ganondorf bristled at Ridley's words, dark magic sparked in his hands that clenched into fists. Let the fool fum, as soon as Ridley had made it back to the bomb factory after retreating from the Halberd. The large gerudo man had begun ranting at the dragon for his failure.

"You left your post, and lost the Halberd! I highly doubt you could even beat your prey if you wanted to." Ganon taunted, Ridley snarled his tail whipping wildly behind him.

"Watch your tongue you primitive scum! At least my enemy is a trained warrior battle hardened since they were young. You were defeated by a _boy_ with the help of some pampered princess." Ridley smirked at the way Ganon's face went red with rage. The dragon caught a glimpse of the man who defeated Ganon, and the space pirate leader wasn't impressed. If it weren't for his allies the space dragon was confident he could have killed him on that airship.

"That doesn't change the fact the heroes now control the Halberd again." It was disappointing that the gerudo lord wasn't going to bite back after Ridley's comment. It was the only entertainment the space dragon had at this point. If it wasn't for Master Hand pulling the strings here, the pirate leader would have killed the man already. He had never killed a member of Ganon's species before. He wondered if he had the same red blood as most humanoids.

"They were going to regain control of it anyway. The hunter had her sights on the vessel, it was as good as destroyed." Ridley's words didn't seem to please Ganon, as he crossed his arms glaring at Ridley. Currently the two were talking through a small computer monitor that was set up in the bomb factory. The space dragon wasn't sure where Ganon was operating from, but he did know that it was away from the action.

"Don't complain about losing assets that you didn't attempt to guard yourself." Ridley was under no disillusion that he was a good person, but at the very least he had his own code he went by. Ganon seemed to be the type of person to sit back and let others do his dirty work, it was pathetic. If you were going to kill someone look them in the eye when you did it was Ridley's philosophy. Not because it was the honorable thing to do no, but because the victim should know who it was who ended their life. That way even in death they will continue to know how they were killed, and who did it. Anything less and the person committing the murder was a coward who shied away from death.

Ganon was a coward Ridley was coming to realize. Nothing more than a snake, Ridley knew his game. He was waiting for Master Hand to take control of Subspace, then he would strike. At least Ridley didn't even pretend to have some form of loyalty. Whenever Master Hand took the time to give Ridley an order the space dragon made it clear that this partnership was one purely shared interests.

"Just guard the factory, and do as you're ordered! The hunter is lost in the dimensional tears. Even if she does make it back to Subspace, we will have already begun phase two. Once we have a stable portal into True Subspace, Master Hand can begin moving the most desirable dimensions together into his new world." The large space dragon let out a huff. Master Hand claimed to be doing this to create a perfect world. Unknown to the other fighters there were two layers of Subspace. The place the contestants of the tournament fought in was actually the second layer. The first layer from Ridley's understanding was a void where nothing but Master Hand existed. Which was why the ruler of Subspace wished to take the best parts of every universe and fuse them into his own perfect dimension. What a laugh as if any world would be perfect, Ridley thought. By Ganon's tone when he spoke of Master Hand's plan he must have found the idea as humorous as Ridley.

"No one will touch this factory." Ridley flicked a talon over the computer's controls and Ganon's face disappeared. He let out a vicious snarl, he wanted the hunter's head in his hands. Not to prowl these halls like some dog on a leash. Tail lashing around Ridley tore out of the communications room his talons clicking on the hard metal floors as he moved.

Ridley let a low roar come from his maw, and quickly a pirate commando was at Ridley's side. Before he could address the pirate leader growled noticing he now had a noticeable blind spot because of that pointed ear rat. She had burnt his eye completely charring it beyond repair. It was insulting that such a fragile being damaged him so.

The commando didn't flinch at Ridley's snarl. It was a common occurrence for the pirate leader to lash out when something angered him. In time when Ridley's rage reached its limits he would kill the nearest being next to him pirate or not. However the pirate's numbers were too thin already, every commando was needed.

"I want all pirates to regroup at the factory. Ganon's wants this factory secure, and we will provide the service he desires." The commando nodded, while he was no doubt wondering why Ridley would follow Ganon's command. He wouldn't question Ridley's orders lest he risk death.

"What of our forces on the Halberd? Should we stage a retrieval mission?" At least three squadrons of pirates had been placed on the Halberd. Mostly just some basic troopers and a few militia throw in for grunt work. Nothing that would have stood up against the hunter let alone the the hunter with allies assisting her. Ridley had told Ganon as such, but the gerudo lord had seemed confident that the pirates along side Master Hand's forces could hold the ship. It appeared whatever trump card Ganon thought he had on the ship had failed.

"Do any hold valuable information?" Ridley's good eye glanced at the pirate before turning ahead.

"No, we can confirm that the sole commando leading the troops was killed by the hunter." Ridley snarled, all commandos had failsafe in their suits that would delete any vital data from their systems when the unit perished. It also sent out a signal to warn other pirates that a commando was killed.

"They're as good as dead. The heroes are probably securing the vessel as we speak. Inform me as soon as all our troops have returned, I will give my orders out then." The commando gave one final nod before heading off to carrying out his orders. Ganon wasn't the only one preparing to betray Master Hand, or preparing to be betrayed was more like it. Ridley needed to prepare to take on both the heroes and Master Hand's forces if necessary. Once he had the hunter's blood coating his claws he would be free to end any partnership the pirates held with Master Hand.

* * *

"So is no one going to question why that polar bear had sunglasses?" Samus heard Link's question loud and clear but chose to make no response to it. Besides out of the many things Samus has seen in her life. A polar bear attacking them wearing sunglasses wasn't the oddest thing.

"Seriously we're all going to ignore this guys!" Link threw his hands up in mock disgust, but he quickly had to grab hold of Samus again to prevent himself from falling. The boy was as light as a feather so Samus had no qualms against carrying him. Plus Link was far too small to traverse the snow unaided, and the harsh cold could cause the young boy to become ill with his clothes that definitely weren't made for winter weather.

Speaking of clothes not made for this weather, Samus took note of the shivering coming from Zelda upon their arrival in this snowy landscape. Luckily Zelda had her magic to stave off freezing to death at least for now. The hylian royal summoned fire in her hands every so often to warm herself up, but that could only work for so long.

The ice climbers swore they could get them off the mountain within an hour, and Samus had no reason not to believe them. Though Samus had never talked to the two mountain climbers much before. They seemed to know what they were doing leading the group down a safe route, and slowly snow was making way for stone as they got closer to the bottom of the mountain.

" _Warning vital suit breach! Critical damage to user detected, seek medical attention immediately."_ Samus ignored the warning flashing before her on her visor instead concentrating at the task at hand. The wounds she received from Zelda's double and the pirates couldn't have happened more than a few hours ago. Pain sharply ran through her chest reminding the hunter of the seriousness of her wound.

Samus panted, but inhaled sharply when the gash across her throat burned. The hunter had been injured countless times on missions. This was nothing, she would continue until their worlds' were safe. At least that's what Samus kept telling herself to keep her body moving.

"This wasn't here before," Nana pointed out as the group passed by an opening in the mountain. A cave that lead inside the mountain, darkness swallowed any idea of seeing where it lead.

"It wasn't?" Zelda questioned aloud, Samus could tell by the royal's expression she was considering whether it was worth investigating. With all the dimensions falling apart as they were the simple cave could be another tear into an entirely different world.

"Ya, this is the path we took up the mountain. This wasn't here before, it must have been behind the snow before…." Popo took a few steps inside the cave looking out in the darkness that prevaded forward.

"We should keep moving, this cave serves no purpose to us." Lucario's rough tone pointed out. Samus glance at the pokemon, and he looked away not meeting her gaze. Samus didn't care though, she was used to that kind of treatment, and she could tell the pokemon didn't fully trust them yet. That was fine, as long as their goals aligned he would see they were no enemies.

"I'm not so sure," Zelda said slowly taking a few steps the royal looked down on the ground. Kneeling down the royal was examining something. Samus approached her to see what she was looking at.

"Footprints," Zelda pointed out, and Samus shifted her vision to said prints. The ground was mostly frozen this far up, so whatever made them must have been heavy. Large and clawed by the looks of it the footprints headed deeper into the cave. Samus shook her head trying to recognize the footprints as something she knew of, but her vision swam for a moment. Luckily no one seemed to notice the hunter flauter.

"Samus," No one except for Zelda of course. The royal's voice was sharp scolding even, but there was concern in her eyes.

"Let's check it out, it can't hurt. Maybe someone else ended up on this mountain too." Popo spoke stopping any concerned words from leaving Zelda's lips. Zelda's gaze stayed on Samus for a moment longer before she looked away answering Popo.

"We should investigate, we still don't know the whole of what's going on here. Anything we can figure out will help us in the long run." Zelda said, her gaze giving Samus another concern look before the group started down into the cave.

Zelda summoned a small flame to settle in her palm lighting the small cavern ahead of them.

"At least it's slightly warmer in here." Link shivered slightly, still holding onto Samus not showing any of intention of asking to be put down. Samus herself tried to ignore the increasing dizzy feeling. She had lost quite a lot of blood, it seemed it was finally catching up with the bounty hunter.

"I sense something up ahead, several people to be exact." Lucario spoke up his eyes narrowing, the strange power he wielded gathering in his paws. Unseen Samus' eyebrow rose wondering how the pokemon managed that, but it wasn't important right now.

"There's some light up ahead," Nana pointed out, up ahead the light from what might be a few lanterns were up ahead. Zelda gave Samus a quick look, and Samus moved to her side raising her arm cannon. A fairly simple strategy on their part, with Samus close by Zelda could use magic to deflect any attacks while Samus dish out her own.

"Stop squirming this were be easier if you held still!" Samus heard a voice speaking up ahead. She glanced at Zelda to see if she recognized the voice, the royal held a confused expression moving forward.

"Youch! Stop hurting me and I wouldn't squirm! This is revenge for all the times I beat you in golf isn't it." A different voice this time, a lower one that Samus could recognize. The small group approached the light to find a strange sight before them.

Bowser was sitting by a lantern's light while Luigi sat next to him wrapping the koopa's king's arm with a bandage. Several green coop troopers were sitting about, along with a few goombas. They too looked worse for wear, all having at least one bandage on their bodies. All eyes immediately went to their small group, while Zelda extinguished the flame held in her palm relaxing slightly at seeing the familiar face of Luigi. Samus kept her arm cannon raised not willing to chance Bowser not attacking them. The two groups stared at each other in silence for a moment until Bowser broke it.

"Oh didn't expect to see you guys of all people out here." Bowser broke the silence with a nonchalant tone, but Samus could tell the koopa king was worried about getting attacked.

"Always a pleasure Bowser, now what in the world are you two doing here? Bowser are you not aiding Master Hand?" Zelda was gazing at the koopa king evenly, her expression passive. Samus could hear a hint of anger in her tone at one of the people who aided in causing all this mess. Bowser seemed to sense it, and he shifted awkwardly.

"I was, but...Ah I'm not really about destroying everything. That's nuts! I tried to ditch some shellhead named Ridley, but he didn't take it too well...I found scaredy pants over here while running, and we've been hiding out here for a bit." Luigi gave Bowser a look at being called scaredy pants, but he couldn't argue the name as he did feel rather scared.

"Do you know what's going on then? What's Master Hand's plan? What could he gain from destroying all our worlds?" Zelda asked urgency clear in her voice, Bowser shrugged though.

"I never even got to see Master Hand, I just did what Ganon and Ridley told me." The king koopa's admitted looking rather embarrassed about it. Zelda sighed shaking her head before looking to Luigi.

"Are you okay Luigi?" Luigi gave the royal a small grin rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh yes, I'm fine Miss Zelda…." Zelda and Luigi continued to speak, at least Samus was almost certain. Things were getting foggy, the hunter felt exhausted. Logically Samus knew she was going to pass out, she'd lost too much blood. The thought felt far away though everything seemed to slow down.

"Samus you're bleeding put me down! Zelda!" Vaguely she heard Link cry out, she felt something warm coating her throat. Reaching up Samus put her hand to her throat, bringing it in front of her afterwards yielding fresh blood coating her fingers. The next thing Samus knew she was on the ground hearing someone call her name.

* * *

 _ **A.N. Lucario was a fun one to write his point of view. I really like the idea of him being more weary of humans unlike the other pokemon like pikachu who happily trust the human fighters. Plus I had fun with the concept of aura, and while in the pokemon anime we've only seen blue aura I think its more interesting for them to be different colors.**_

 _ **Anyway fun fact this is the rewritten version of this chapter. I got to about to chapter 26 before I realize I didn't like how things were flowing. I swear I write and rewrite this story more than I do anything elseXD. Luckily though I'm now pleased with how things are going, and I should be back on track to getting this stuff done hopefully. With that reviews are loved and I'll see you guys next chapter!**_


	26. A Callout to the Heroes

_**A.N. I'm back with another chapter for you guys! Things have been pretty busy with classes and all that jazz, but I've been working on this fic in my down time. I recently spent my Saturday with a couple friends playing smash, and it got me hyped to work on this even more so. I'm hoping to get another chapter to you guys soon, but we'll see what happens anyway with that enjoy the chapter!^^**_

* * *

Chapter 25

"LADY PALUTENA!" Red covered his ears trying to block out the massive yelling from Pit. Lucas too was beside him trying in vain to shield his ears. Squirtle has withdrawn into his shell only peaking out when Pit stopped to take a breath. Red took pity on the poor pokemon returning him to his pokeball.

"I don't think she can hear you Pit." Lucas pointed out when the angel had finally given up trying to call upon the goddess. When Red had join the group everything had been going as well as to be expected. Lady Palutena had managed to lead them to Red's lost Ivysaur freeing him from the clutches of the monsters that captured him. At first Red was quite confounded by the voice that seemed to come from no where, but he was learning fast to just accept some of the quirks of his new companions. Not long ago though, Lady Palutena had gone silent.

To make things even worse Kirby had run off somewhere. Red thought he saw something in the distance earlier, but before he could figure out what. The pink hero had already dashed off after it. The young heroes had tried to chase after him, but Kirby was far too fast for any of them to even have a chance of catching him.

"This isn't like her! She has to be in trouble!" Pit cried looking up at the sky as if he would be able to see the goddess. Lucas frowned looking like he wanted to say something to reassure the angel but he couldn't come up with the words.

Red stepped up instead placing a hand on the angel's shoulder.

"The best thing we can do then is to keep moving. She's a goddess right? I'm sure she's fine." Though Red had no idea if that statement held any merit it seemed to lift Pit's spirits.

"I guess, okay let's keep moving the last thing she told us was your...Charizard was it? He's this way." Red nodded confirming his pokemon's name. The small group had made their way into the mountains. Eventually finding what appeared to be a systems of caves carved into the mountain. Inside dozens of monsters made their home, claiming the caves as their new lair.

"Do you ever wonder why monsters like hiding in caves." Pit spoke up as they entered a large cave opening on the side of the mountain. Red shrugged, plenty of pokemon made their homes in caves. However from the way Pit spoke monsters that attacked you were commonplace in his world.

"Not sure, monsters like these aren't from my world. The worst thing you'd find in a cave is a hoard of Zubats." Dirt crunched under Red's feet as they transversed the cave. Lady Palutena told the small group of heroes that Charizard was somewhere in this cave. Anticipation welled in Red's chest, eager to find his first pokemon.

"None of these things look like they're from my world either. You recognize any of these things Lucas?" Pit asked the psychic boy who shook his head.

"Thankfully not," Lucas was looking just as on edge as ever. Red was beginning to think the young boy was always in a constant state of worry. The pokemon trainer shrugged the thought away, they had more important things to worry about right now.

The small group traversed the many tunnels that made up the cave. Battling all manner of monsters that got in their way. There were various train tracks leading throughout the tunnels. A few minecarts still stuck on their tracks leading Red to come to the conclusion that this was once a mine not a simple cave.

It didn't manner though as eventually the small group came to hear loud roars echoing in the tight tunnels. Red didn't even need to question what it was, he knew the sound of his most beloved pokemon when he heard it.

"Charizard!" Red heard the protests of his companions as he went blazing ahead towards the sound of his pokemon. All the tunnels looked basically the same, but he heard another roar from Charizard answering his call. As he got closer to the sounds he caught a glance at the tunnel walls. Scorch marks marred the walls, Charizard must have been fighting something.

"Charizard where are you!" Red paused in his fast pace run to listen. After a moment another roar echoed down the hall. Red ran forward, the others were far behind him at this point, but it didn't matter he had to get to his pokemon.

The tunnel opened up into a larger chamber where most of the minecart tracks met up. At some point it could have been an unloading station for whatever they were mining from the mountain. Now however it was empty except for a few minecarts and some crates scatter around the room.

In the middle of the room stood Red's best friend, the first pokemon he ever got. Charizard was a large orange dragon like pokemon. With large wings, and a tail alight with flames. He would certainly be an intimidating sight to any foe.

Red went dashing over to his pokemon in his joy not noticing that the pokemon didn't share his look. He didn't notice the malice in Charizard's eyes until it was too late. Red's world went white for a second, the next thing he knew he was on the ground looking up.

Shakily he brought a hand to his chest, he flinched upon touching charred skin. Letting out a shuddering breath, Red looked to see Charizard's foot slam down next to his head. The fire type pokemon towered over the human.

Charizard snarled down at Red, flames coming from his jaws. Red blinked his mind finally catching up to the situation. Tears welled in his eyes, not wanting to believe his first pokemon would ever hurt him.

"Charizard…" Red muttered, the pokemon showed no remorse, a fire blast charging ready in his jaw. Red shakily reached for one of the pokeballs on his belt, but his body felt like lead. He had never been so seriously hurt before and his world was spinning.

Red didn't get the chance though as another roar resonated in the chamber. The pokemon standing above Red was thrown back out of Red's line of sight an orange blur flying by. Red heard various roars and the sounds of fighting happening out of his line of vision.

Gritting his teeth Red sat up to be greeted by a rather confusing sight. Two charizards were fighting, exchanging blow after blow with each other. The two pokemon looked like carbon copies of each other, aside for one looking more beat up than the other. After a moment of staring dumbfounded, it clicked in Red's mine.

"Charizard!" He called out to his true pokemon. The more beat up of the two charizards let out a roar slamming his tail into his opponent sending them flying into the wall. With a moment of reprieve from his enemy Charizard rushed to his trainer. The large fire dragon dashed to Red's side leaning down and nuzzling his trainer with his snout.

"I missed you too buddy, we'll talk later we have a battle to win right now! Ready?" Charizard let out mighty roar turning to face his opponent with renewed confidence. The other charizard had just crawled out of the wall he was throw into snarling. Charizard let out a roar wings spreading out, the flame on his tail growing in size.

Red struggled to his feet, but he managed to stand. Turning his cap around Red smirked.

"Alright Charizard use rock smash on the ground! Give yourself some cover." Charizard smashed the ground with his tail, dirt and debris went flying into the air leaving a cloud between the two pokemon. The other charizard roared letting out a blast of flames that soundly missed Charizard who disappeared in the cloud.

"Now use dragon claw Charizard!" While the other charizard had been focused on finding him in the cloud. Charizard had flown above the other. Now coming down upon his opponent, Charizards' claws glowed and the dragon pokemon slashed the other in the back.

"Good! Now use flamethrower!" The other charizard turned his head around just in time for Charizard's mouth to open letting loose a torrent of flames.

"Finish it up with seismic toss!" While the other was still disoriented Charizard grabbed the fire pokemon lifting him off the ground, and throwing him slamming head first into the ground knocking the pokemon out. Charizard let out a cry of triumph as the other pokemon lay on the ground. He quickly went rushing over to his trainer nuzzling Red, content with their victory.

"Great job Charizard," Red smiled lightly wrapping his arms around the pokemon's head hugging him.

"I missed you too." Charizard made a quiet rumbling noise in agreement. When they let go of each other they both looked to the other pokemon. Both trainer and pokemon's eyes widened as the defeated dragon appeared to be melting. Orange skin changed black, and began falling off into a puddle of black sludge around the pokemon.

The charizard shuddered and slowly it sat up. Red gasped its face was already half melted away and no eyes were presence in the creature's head. Only two red pinpricks remain of the beast's eyes. Charizard took a step in front of his trainer ready to defend the two again.

The creature appeared to smirk, though with its quickly falling apart face it was hard to tell.

"This world is imperfect, Master Tabuu will rule soon…" The creature's voice gurgled, and within moments the creature fell apart. Nothing but a puddle of black sludge remained, leaving pokemon and trainer staring in dumbfounded horror.

"What the heck happened here!" Pit's voice broke the two from the daze of staring at the puddle. Red looked at his pokemon then back to the puddle, and finally back to Pit who had just finally caught up to them with Lucas. Red gave them an uncertain smile scratching the back of his head.

"Heh, I ummm...found Charizard." The smile quickly fell from Red's face as the ground rush up to meet him. He closed his eyes before it happened though passing out into blissful unconsciousness.

* * *

"What in the goddess's name is that?" the Hero of Time asked dumbfounded by the sight he was seeing. Standing on the deck of the Halberd the hero watched as a massive green dragon like creature flew in circles around the ship.

After Ridley was driven off, and Samus and Zelda had fallen disappearing into one of those portals. They had used the Halberd to pick up the remaining heroes that were in their group. Picking up Ike, Marth, and Yoshi they had been about to take the ship back to where Samus and Zelda disappeared in order to search for them.

However their plans had been cut short when a new tear in space opened, and a large dragon like creature had come forth. At first the creature didn't bother the ship, flying around wildly as if confused about its situation, but then it had began a ruthless assault on the vessel. Peach and himself had taken to the deck of the ship to try and prevent the beast from destroying the vessel them along with it.

The beast let out a fearsome roar, energy building up in its maw before letting out a beam of bright yellow energy towards the Halberd. Link threw himself down steadying himself as the ship shuddered.

"This couldn't get much worse could it?" Link groaned, but as if the universe wanted to prove him wrong another portal opened not too far from the ship, and Link gritted his teeth as the dragon came in for another attack not noticing the other tear in space.

"Meta Knight now would be a good time to get us out of here!" Link shouted up to the Dreamland native up on the control deck. A few strangler pirates had survived long enough to damage the ship's engines and main weaponry. The attacking dragon wasn't helping the ship get moving any faster either.

"Working on it!" Meta Knight called back, and Link could spot him up there messing with some controls. The hylian hero sighed turning his attention back to the new portal opening up. Out of it Link saw several small things fall out that Link couldn't make out what they were from a distance. Then out of the portal another dragon came flying out.

Unlike the other one that was slim, and a light green color with red and yellow highlights. This one was slightly bulkier with a dark green covering most of its body. It had larger jaws than the other one, and bright eyes that appeared confused at the situation the beast was in.

"Gobblegut?" Link heard Peach say in disbelief, he looked to the Mushroom Kingdom ruler for an explanation.

"You know this thing?" Link gestured the dragon, both dragons were serpent like sliding through the air. Gobblegut looked around as if trying to figure out what was going on.

"He's from my world, he helped Bowser when he was trying to take over the galaxy." Clutching his sword Link readied himself for the beast to attack the ship as well, but instead the other dragon roared at Gobblegut. Energy building up, the dragon fired a beam of energy at the new comer. Gobblegut let out a great roar of pain, but the dragon recovered his eyes narrowing at the unnamed dragon. The larger dragon went barreling towards the slimer beast his jaws coming to clamp down on the beast's middle. Roaring the unnamed dragon positioned itself so its head could aim at Gobblegut.

As the two beasts continued to duke it out Link let out a sigh of relief. Let the dragons fight it out, they had more important things to worry about. Before he could head back inside though the hero noticed a small glint rushing towards them. Pulling out his bow he prepared to shoot it before it got close to him or Peach.

"Wait," Peach held up her hand, and Link frowned. Within moments the thing flying towards them was visible. It was a creature of some kind that Link wasn't familiar with. It was small almost raindrop shaped, a bright yellow coloring that almost glowed like a star. Two small eyes were wide and it flew over to them. Flying right towards Peach, the princess caught the creature in her arms cradling it like a child. Before Link could ask what the creature was since Peach clearly knew. Two more flew in, a blue one and a red one, the creatures crowded around Peach making almost whimpering like noises.

"It's okay, you're all fine." Peach soothed them, before she looked at Link who was giving Peach a very confused look.

"These are Lumas, they're also from my world. Normally Rosalina looks after them, but if they're here…" Link watched Peach's face become strained with worry for this Rosalina person.

"Let's get'em inside then, they're better with us than roaming around alone." Peach nodded in agreement continuing to whisper soothing things to the distraught Lumas. The Lumas continued to make distressed noises though, gathering around the blonde princess following her inside the ship.

While Link went to talk to Meta Knight Peach tended to the Lumas. The poor things were completely distraught, and wouldn't stop shaking clinging to Peach. She tried to keep her expression calm. The Lumas were in essence children, and would easily pick up on if she was distressed. However the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom was deeply worried.

Lumas were in a way young stars in her world, and a woman named Rosalina looked after them as their mother. If Lumas were here than that meant the space faring woman was in trouble. Peach frowned, it wasn't enough that two of her closest friends were in trouble. Whatever was happening had to drag another one of Peach's loved ones into this too.

While Peach didn't know Rosalina as well as she did Mario and Luigi. The woman did help Mario save their world, so it was hard to not consider her a friend. And Peach did spend some time with her after Mario had saved her from Bowser that adventure. Rosalina was a kind person who definitely did not deserve whatever evil has come her way.

Walking to one the least frightening parts of the ship, Peach found a kitchen that was still warm from the ovens being left running. The Halberd was an impressive ship, but it certainly wasn't the most comforting place to be so this would have to do for a place to calm the Lumas down.

"Alright, it's okay you're all safe now." Peach gathered the three Lumas in her arms holding them close. These ones were rather small, smaller than what Peach remembered the last time she got to be around the star children. These Lumas must be young, Peach concluded.

The three Lumas curled up in Peach's arms still shaking. Peach wanted to ask what happened, find out what has become of Rosalina. The Lumas were clearly too distraught to talk right now though.

After several moments their shaking and shuddering calmed slightly, and Peach was able to loosen her hold on them without protest. She smiled lightly at the creatures glad to see they were calming down.

"Are you three okay?" The Lumas paused, seeming to ponder the answer for a bit. Then the gold one floated away from Peach nodding. The other two gaining strength from their kin floated next to them nodding as well.

"That's good, did you get separated from the Comet Observatory, and fall into that portal?" The Comet Observatory was where Rosalina and the Lumas lived, at the mention of it though the Lumas regained their distressed expression.

"Mama is in trouble," the gold one chimed.

"Bad guy was attacking," this time the red one piped up continuing for its kin.

"She told us to run and hide, that Gobblegut would watch us." Since Gobblegut once followed and obeyed Bowser one would think the dragon completely evil. Peach was a firm believer in seeing good in everyone though, and the dragon must have had its reasons for following Bowser in the past. So she didn't put too much thought into a former minion of Bowser helping Rosalina.

"Do you know who was attacking you?" Peach didn't want to ask the Lumas these questions, she really didn't. It was clear the poor things were scared beyond belief, but they needed to know what was going on. They were still mostly in the dark about what was happening here in Subspace. They only knew that for some reason Master Hand was commanding an army and tearing their worlds apart. Also Peach recalled the horrid creature that had copied Zelda's form mentioning someone named Tabuu.

"Didn't see him, Mama and Polari stayed behind." Peach frowned at that, she wasn't surprised Rosalina would confront whatever was threatening her children, but Peach had a slim hope that she would have gotten away to safety.

"Okay, thank you for telling me. I know you're scared, but it's going to be alright. Will you three be okay here while we take care of this. I promise we will get you back to your mother soon." Peach's comforting tone seemed to soothe the Lumas. They nodded the three giving Peach a small wave as she left them in the kitchen.

Leaving the kitchen Peach made her way up to the deck where she knew the rest of the fighters were coming up with a plan. She wasn't even a floor away before she could hear shouting coming from above. Clearly an argument of some sort was going on.

"Our priority should be to find where they are producing these bombs, and stop it." Peach heard Meta Knight's cool tone though it was strained and a slightly higher pitch showing the dreamland native was angry. Peach hurried along climbing the ladder to get up to the control deck.

"We'd have a better shot if we figure out where everyone else is first! These are our friends we're talking about we can't just leave them out there alone!" Link roared just as Peach entered the room. No one except Yoshi notice her, but the green dinosaur was standing back a frown on his face as the swordsmen argue.

"I agree with Link, we have more a chance taking out whatever is making these bombs with a larger group." Ike spoke up putting a hand on Link's shoulder to settle him down, but the hero of time was still bristling with anger.

"If we don't act quickly though, it may not matter if we find our friends." Marth stated grimly getting a surprised look from Ike and Link.

"Marth! You can't really agree with this metal faced weird! What about Samus and Zelda? Are we just supposed to cross our fingers, and hope they didn't fall into their death!" Link jabbed a finger in Meta Knight's direction who merely stood there wrapping his cap around his body. The green clad hero shot him one final glare before looking in Marth's direction again. Marth raised his hands in a passive manner frowning.

"I'm just saying Meta Knight has a point, the longer we waste looking for people the more time that will give to our foes to go about their deeds." Meta Knight made a small nod in agreement, but Link glared at the knight huffing.

"We could barely take this ship. Wherever they're making the bombs is bound to be more heavily guarded than this. And we had more people to take this ship, now we're down two of our strongest players, and you think we can take an even stronger base. That I will remind you we don't even know where it is!" Meta Knight glared at Link as he ranted he body tense as if he expected Link to attack him.

"You don't know where your friends are either. Everyone who came to this tournament could be spread across dozens of different worlds by now. It'd be impossible to find everyone." Meta Knight pointed out, his cool yellow eyes expressionless to the cold logic he was speaking of.

"Then we should split up, and find everyone we can." Peach's voice came alerting everyone to her presence. Ike shot Peach a relieved look, mouthing something along the lines of "they've been at this for a while". Peach smiled at the swordsmen before focusing on the task at hand.

"We have a place we can call safe for now, so we should make use of it. While a few of us go out and look for where they're making the bombs the rest should look for everyone who can help us." Peach reasoned, sounding very much like Zelda the blonde thought smiling. The hylian ruler was an expert at negotiations and wordplay, and it seemed it was rubbing off on Peach. Link seemed to agree as he nodded crossing his arms thinking over Peach's plan.

"It would be unwise to separate with so few of us. What if one team runs into trouble they can't handle." Meta knight pointed out, Peach smiled at him causing the Dreamland native to hesitate.

"Then they retreat and join back up with the main group of course. It's not perfect, but it's better than arguing about it. Can't you see that this is clearly their plan, they know we're not as strong alone so they've separated us." This statement was met with nods, and Meta Knight looked away briefly as if embarrassed.

"Very well, if this is our plan than who will search for the bombs?" Meta Knight folded his cape around himself speaking evenly. Peach thought for a moment looking over the group frowning. She was no tactician this decision was better left to a warrior. Luckily Marth stepped forward resting his hand on his sword.

"Yoshi and I can go," Marth glanced at the dinosaur to make sure he was okay with that idea before continuing. "Yoshi is the fastest of us, so if we run into trouble we should be able to make it out of it." Yoshi made a small noise of determination bouncing on his feet.

"Alright then the rest of us will search for everyone else." Link said, unfolding his arms nodding towards Marth and Yoshi.

"We will take the Halberd so if you run into trouble look for us in the sky." Meta Knight informed the two, and with that Marth and Yoshi left to head out in search of wherever the bombs were being produced. With the two gone it now fell on the rest of them to find everyone before it was too late. They were heroes in their world's for a reason, and Peach knew together they could defeat this evil.

* * *

" **You're more powerful than I expected, but it is futile to resist…"** Rosalina panted holding her arm that she was fairly certain was broken now close. The mother of lumas had known something was wrong as soon as she felt the first tug of something entering the galaxy. Whatever creature hovering above her now had ripped a giant hole in her world bringing monsters and all manner of chaos with it. Rosalina had done her best to hold off the human god like being while her lumas escaped, but now it was over.

The Comet Observatory was in ruins, falling apart in space without power. Shakily Rosalina stood, Polari her faithful luma companion trilled softly next to her. Unlike the others who Rosalina had ordered to flee, the first luma Rosalina ever met would always stay by her side. The god like being gazed down at her as if confused by her defiance.

" **You will continue to fight, even though you know it is useless."** Rosalina chuckled humorless, feeling somehow lighter even though her words now could be her last.

"I may lose now, but my friends will defeat you. If my end continues the cycle then I am not afraid, because I'll fall knowing someone will stop you." The god was silent for a few moments as he hovered down closer to Rosalina.

" **You speak of the ruler and the heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom. Your logic is flawed, as is everything in this world. It is why it must be remade anew. I will recreate the universe in perfection, and if you do not accept it...you will perish."** With that gathering energy in its hands the god like being threw one last attack at Rosalina, and the mother of lumas lost herself in darkness.

* * *

 _ **A.N. I just had to make another reference to a Smash 4 character but hey there is a reason Tabuu is going after these characters himself, but I'll expand on that later. But also no Samus or Zelda this chapter. We'll catch up with them next chapter I wanted to spend at least one chapter on our other heroes especially on the ones we haven't seen in a while like Pit, Lucas, and they're little group. With that final note reviews are loved and I'll see you guys next chapter!^^**_


	27. Time To Regroup

**_A.N. Guess who's back, it is me I'm back. It's been awhile hasn't it, but I told you guys I was going to finish this story and I am. So I'm back with a chapter, and hopefully more to come. I'm about to take my vacation from work, so I'll actually be free of everything work, class, and all that jazz._**

* * *

Chapter 26

"Wait Samus isn't a robot? I didn't think robots could bleed." If looks could kill Bowser would be dead several times over from the glare Zelda shot him. The koopa king immediately shut his mouth, and Zelda went back to tending to the hunter. Samus lay on the hard cave ground while Zelda sat next to her prone form. The royal hands hovering over the wound marring Samus' throat focusing her magic into healing her.

It seemed Samus was intent on either giving Zelda a heart attack or stopping her heart completely, as that was the only way the royal could think to describe the feeling of watching Samus fall unconscious. With her magic thoroughly entangled in the hunter's being, she felt the shallow beat of her heart, sluggishly trying to keep functioning.

Thankfully Zelda managed to get the wounds to close yet again, but the hunter remained unconscious. Zelda wanted to scold the hunter for being so foolish and stubborn, but Samus lay unmoving. The lights and visor on her armor were a harsh red color, no doubt signaling the hunter's critical state.

Letting out a breath Zelda removed her hands from the hunter feeling drained. Magic took energy and Zelda has been using a lot of it. Besides having to pull the hunter from the brink of death wasn't the most calming situation to be in. She covered her eyes for a moment with her hand taking a deep breath.

"Are you okay?" Zelda uncovered her eyes to see Link standing next to her worry covering his features. Behind him Popo and Nana stood both looking equally concerned. Zelda shook her head trying to gather herself.

"I'm fine, just a little tired…" Zelda had to pause feeling the throb of a headache coming on. She was extending herself too much, conjuring fire was one thing but Zelda was using a lot of healing magic to keep herself and the others moving. Especially with wounds as grievous as Samus'. It looked like Link was about to say something when Bowser spoke nervously tapping his claws together.

"Uhh I hate to be the one to point this out, but you should probably get your metal friend up and moving soon. I don't doubt that shellhead Ridley sent people out to look for me. If they find us all, I doubt it will be a good time with half of us already beaten down." Zelda frowned, there was always something. Shakily Zelda stood, getting concerned looks from the younger fighters.

"Maybe you should sit down for a bit, you look kind of pale Zelda." Nana said, the ice climbers holding hands both looking equally concerned. Zelda shook her head, they had to catch up to the others first.

"Bowser can you carry Samus?" The royal was under no delusion that she could lift the hunter in her heavy armor. She would have preferred it if she could though, not trusting the koopa king to not drop her. Bowser shrugged approaching the prone hunter.

"Be careful," Zelda ordered, watching the koopa king heft the metal clad warrior into his arms.

"Heck, heavier than they look…" mumbling to himself, Bowser lifted the hunter up though one could tell he was struggling with his own injured arm. Both Ganondorf and Ridley were none too pleased that he had decided to defect, and their minions did quite a number on him. Normally Zelda would heal him gladly, but she felt too drained at this point. She wouldn't be very useful if she passed out too, and she needed at least some energy on reserve in case Samus' life took another downturn.

"Make sure to support her neck, if that wound opens again I don't know if I'll be able to close it." Bowser nodded in understanding steadying the dead weight in his arms. Zelda let out a small sigh of relief when the hunter stayed stable, the wounds not reopening. While Zelda wanted to get a clearer story of what happened to the two Mushroom Kingdom residents hiding out here. Some things were more important, and getting themselves to at least the somewhat safety of numbers with their allies certainly was. Plus Zelda would imagine the Link of her time and the others would have secured the Halberd by now. Making the vessel at least a somewhat safe place to regroup.

"Okay, let's keep moving we have to find a flying ship called the Halberd." The younger fighters and Luigi still gave Zelda concerned looks, though none of them believed they could sway the queen. Lucario simply nodded in acceptance while Bowser didn't speak too busy trying not to jostle Samus too much and face the royal's anger.

The small group continued their way down the mountain leaving the cave. This time Zelda telling the ice climbers to direct from the rear and cover Bowser in case of an attack. Link trotted in front of Bowser shooting worried looks Samus' way every now and again. The two koopa troopers and gooba walked behind Bowser with Luigi. Meanwhile Zelda walked in front with Lucario who walked by her side without a word.

Eventually as they moved Link started talking to Bowser asking him questions about his world. The ice climbers talking to Luigi getting his side of the story of how he ended up with Bowser. The younger of the plumber brothers stating he got separated from Mario before the fighting even started, and had gotten lost.

Zelda only paid a small amount of attention to what was being said. Instead keeping an ear out for anything out of place. She could feel Lucario's eyes on her, but mostly ignored it.

"Your aura is tense." The pokemon spoke suddenly, gazing at the royal. The others mostly ignored or didn't hear him speaking. Zelda hummed showing the pokemon she heard him.

"I'd say this is a fairly tense situation we're in right now." Lucario grunted in acknowledgement still staring at the royal.

"Is there something else?" Zelda questioned, Lucario stayed silent for a moment before answering.

"I am trying to understand your motives. You nearly depleted all your strength to heal the metal warrior. You are clearly from different worlds, why risk so much for them?" The royal wasn't phased by the question. She had seen the looks Lucario had been giving all of them. The pokemon was wary of them, and now he was trying to get a read on his new allies to see if he could trust them.

"Samus and I are very close we met last tournament, and have spent quite a lot of time together since then. I would do everything I could to save any of you from death though, including you." The look Lucario gave Zelda told her he doubted the royal. The pokemon was clearly an actions over words kind of person, so Zelda didn't let his suspicious look get to her.

"I am cautious of humans, I apologize if I have insulted you." Zelda waved him off not feeling insulted at all.

"No harm done, though if humans bother you technically the only humans here are Popo, Nana, and Luigi. I would hope you are not threatened by them." The queen spoke in a light tone gesturing to the two teens that were talking animatedly with Link. Lucario's ear twitched tilting his head in confusion.

"You appear rather human to me," Zelda shrugged, not committing an answer letting Lucario form his own conclusions. They were silent for a moment before Lucario spoke again.

"You are a ruler of some kind correct?" An eyebrow rose at that, Zelda wondering where the pokemon was going with this. Perhaps it was just curiosity.

"Correct, Queen Zelda the XIV of Hyrule at your service, but you don't need to call me queen. I'll hardly be one if our worlds get destroyed." Lucario made a small hum agreeing with the royal's statement.

"You seem rather adept at combat for a queen." Again Zelda shrugged, not looking at the pokemon simply watching the path ahead for any dangers.

"I'd prefer not to fight, but sometimes it is a necessary evil. If I could talk the villains out of doing this I would, but sadly some are beyond words." Lucario held a curious expression listening to the royal. Probably wondering if the royal was being truthful. The pokemon was silent for several moments. Almost long enough for Zelda to believe he was done talking with her.

"Your right hand," the pokemon spoke up again leading Zelda to raise an eyebrow.

"Yes? What about it?" Of course Zelda knew where the pokemon was going with this. He no doubt notice the triforce glowing brightly while she was healing Samus, and if not that the golden mark was hard not to notice emblazoned on her hand. It was one of the reasons Zelda always wore gloves, but the royal had abandoned them at some point during this crisis. They probably had fallen apart during one of the many fights they had gotten into.

"...Nothing, who is on this ship we're looking for?" One could tell Lucario was still wondering about the triforce on Zelda's hand, but Zelda didn't have the energy to worried about what he thought right now.

"A couple friend's of ours that are trying to solve this crisis as well. We stand a better chance stopping this if we regroup together." Lucario's eyes narrowed his ears lowering at Zelda's words.

"What are our chances of finding this ship though? It seems highly unlikely that we'll find a ship in this vast world that is already falling…." Before Lucario could finish his sentence a loud rumbling sounded out in the air. Everyone stopped moving looking up from behind the mountain with a roar of rushing air a mass of metal flew over head.

"Found it." Zelda deadpanned giving Lucario a small smile before looking back up at the massive ship that flew over head. However the smile was quickly lost as the reason the ship was speeding across them was made clear. A second ship sped above, this one was vaguely familiar almost like Fox McCloud's ship, but it had red highlights painted on its hull.

The smaller ship zipped around The Halberd peppering the larger vessel with laser fire. Strangely the Halberd didn't fire back its large cannon mounted on the deck staying still unmoving as explosions rocked it.

"Bowser!" Zelda snapped, they had to do something none of them had the range to hit the fast moving ship. Even Zelda's din fire would be too slow to catch the ship, and if it did hit it didn't have the power needed to bring it down. Link had his bow and arrows, but Zelda doubted arrows would even put a dent on that ship. If Samus were awake she could easily shoot the vessel down, but that clearly wasn't an option.

"Ya?" The Koopa King stuttered, no doubt worrying if he had done something to upset the queen.

"How is your other arm can you throw something?" Bowser gave her a confused look as did the others, but now was not the time as the Halberd continued to take fire. Explosions rocked the ship's engines, the large ship drifting a little farther before stopping.

"When that ship passes by again throw me up to it." Zelda ordered, and Bowser's eyes widened. He glanced at how the smaller ship did circles around the Halberd always passing above the heroes within moments.

"You sure that's…"

"Just do it Bowser we don't have time!" Bowser jumped at Zelda's harsh order, he nodded gently laying Samus on the ground before he positioned himself to throw. The ship did another pass and Zelda jumped, her feet landing on Bowser's palm, and then as the ship circled for another pass Bowser threw the royal with all his strength.

Air went rushing pass Zelda, and the queen quickly used Farore's wind to push herself even farther. Then just as she heard the ship wizing towards her she summoned her magic Zelda being replaced by Sheik.

She hit the cockpit of the ship hard feeling several bones in her legs crack, but it didn't deter the sheikah. Red eyes narrowed at the being flying the ship in the cockpit below her. A wolf human creature gazed shocked at the person standing on his ship. Shock was quickly replaced with anger, and Sheik saw the wolfman tap several keys before the ship sharply turned on its side.

Sheik knelt down grabbing the edge of the ship as it flew on its side trying to shake the sheikah. Dangling from the ship Sheik held firmly on with one hand while the other pulled a deku nut from her pocket. Closing her eyes Sheik smash the nut against the cockpit causing a blinding flash to resonate.

Immediately the ship shuddered as the pilot was blinded, and the ship went out of control. Sheik held on trying to find a safe spot to jump off to, but the ship went barreling down towards the mountain. The ship was spinning and she couldn't see straight the world spiraling too fast.

She vaguely heard a chorus of no's and several screams to jump. Sheik didn't have to make the choice to do so, as her fingers slipped from the ship's hulled and Sheik went flying the last thing she heard was an explosion of the ship crashing into the mountain.

* * *

The sharp beeping of her suit's warning system was the first thing Samus came to notice. A harsh noise that Samus has heard more times than she could count sadly. Her body ached pain shooting through her chest and neck reminding the hunter why the suit was warning her so.

Sluggishly Samus opened her eyes, noting that there was nothing but a metal ceiling above her. Blinking several times, Samus disregarded the warning flashing up on her HUD. Slowly the hunter sat up seeing now she had been lying on a bed. Looking around she appeared to be in some infirmary she'd never been to before.

At first nothing caught her attention, and the hunter pondered what happened. The last thing she remembered was finding Bowser and Luigi in the cave, and then... Zelda! The hunter sprung up from the bed spotting the hylian laying on a bed not to far from the hunter.

All pain forgotten in the moment Samus rushed over to the royal noting several bandages wrapped around her head and even more covering several injuries.

Quickly Samus activated her scan visor checking the royal over.

 _Life signs detected, no data on Hylian species to cross reference for a healthy standard. Several broken bones detected, injuries cataloged, burns extending on hands to upper arms, three fractured ribs…_

Samus gripped the bed Zelda was laying on tightly as her suit continued to list the many injuries the royal had obtained. Had Zelda obtained all of these while she had been unconscious? The burns and several other injuries were from earlier, Samus had already taken note of them. These breaks were new though, had they been attacked while she been passed out.

Silently Samus cursed herself for her own foolishness she had allowed herself to flaunter, and Zelda had been hurt while she had done nothing. Idly the hunter gently took Zelda's unmoving hand holding it perhaps for her own comfort.

If only she had the ability to heal like Zelda did. Samus wouldn't admit it outloud, but she especially envied that power Zelda had. The power to heal others, to give life back to those even on the brink of death. How many people could she have saved if she had been able to heal them instead of only being able to fight, kill, and destroy. The power suit she wielded was a weapon of war the Chozo had created long ago, but even they stopped using it preferring to solve their problems with peace rather than violence.

Samus watched the shallow breaths the royal took, the motion calming some of the hunter's nerves seeing Zelda still drawing breath. The hunter jumped hearing a door slide open training her arm cannon at the sound Samus relaxed slightly upon seeing the familiar face of the hero of time standing there. Like all of them no doubt Link was looking a little rough from fighting, but not as worse of as Zelda or Samus who still had blood staining her armor.

"You're awake! Thank Farore! You had us all worried there metalhead." Link grinned, and finally Samus lowered her weapon. She didn't sense this was another one of those creatures copying their forms, so she relaxed slightly.

Link approached her glancing at Zelda who still lay behind her. He frowned, then looked back at Samus his grimacing at the sight of blood.

"Alright, you with me, you're getting a drink and maybe cracker or two. You look like half your blood is on the outside." Samus was ready to protest not ready to leave Zelda's side yet. Link seemed to already know this though and spoke up first.

"Lucario is sitting outside, if anything tries to get in here he'll warn us. We're on the Halberd anyway we've got the ship pretty locked down now, so snack break let's go." Link's tone was surprisingly stern, a stark contrast to his usual more sarcastic personality. Glancing at Zelda, Samus internally sighed. She already passed out once, and got the royal hurt today, and Link was offering the chance to recoup a little. Samus would take what she could get.

Link grinned when Samus nodding accepting the hero's offer. Samus' body seemed happy to remind the hunter of the correctness of her choice. The hunter's vision swaying for a moment as they started moving. Samus shook it off willing herself to stay on her feet long enough to get the situation of what was going on now.

Link lead them to a large room with dozens of tables lined up, it must have been a cafeteria at one time for whoever manned the ship. The hero told Samus to sit down while he grabbed something. Samus reluctantly obeyed not enjoying taking orders from the green clad hero. She sat down at one of the many lunch tables leaning against the metal table grateful it had the strength not to bend under the weight of her heavy armor.

The hero of time came back moments later, a bottle of water and a steaming bowl.

"Glad we picked up those Lumas, they sure can cook." Link sat the food in front of Samus before rounding the table to sit across from her. Sitting down he was silent eyeing the food indicating he wouldn't talk until Samus at least drank something.

Reluctantly, Samus removed her helmet sitting it on the table grabbing the bottled water taking a long drink before sitting it back down. The cool liquid felt great, but Samus wouldn't admit it. Least of all to Link who was already looking far too pleased with himself.

"Great, so you've been out cold for about three hours. At least with us when we found you and the others. Ike, Meta Knight, Peach, and I have been flying the Halberd around trying to find everyone after you, and Zelda fell down the portal. Some star ship though started attacking us out of nowhere. No idea who it was, they looked like they were from Fox's world. Anyway we went to fly over the mountains you guys were on to escape when the thing blew the engines out. From what the others told me Zelda had Bowser throw her onto the ship as it flew above them, and she took it out. Took us a while but we found her where she fell off the ship, luckily she fell off before the ship hit the mountain." Link grimaced at the thought. Meanwhile Samus was internally noting to tell Zelda if she had to promise the royal to always come back to the royal. Then the same should go for Zelda, as Samus didn't want to think about the royal pulling off such a feat while Samus herself had been unconscious unable to back her up.

"Anyway you and Zelda are out of commision for a little bit. There's no way either of you can fight the way you guys are." Samus' eyes narrowed at that glaring at the hero who met her gaze evenly.

"Listen, I don't like it either but someone has to stick around the Halberd while we go out searching for other fighters. Since the Halberd's engine's are bust we have to go on foot. I know you want to go out and smash some bad guys heads, but we need someone to watch the ship. While you were out everyone already agreed that if you woke up. You would protect the ship, everyone else got into teams to search for more fighters or for wherever the villains are working from. We sent Marth and Yoshi out to look a while back and they've disappeared." The plan had some logic to it, but Samus needed to be out there defeating whatever threat was plotting against them. She hasn't played the defensive role since her days when she served the Federation.

"I'm going to check out the forest again. The one you and I first meet up in. If it really is Kokiri Forest from Hyrule then there should be a fairy fountain somewhere in there. A couple fairies should get us all back to full, and then we can kick Master Hand on his ass and save the world." Samus didn't know what healing priorities a fairy had, but since Zelda could spawn fire from her fingertips and heal people. She has learned not to question what things from Hyrule can do. It was clear she was still reluctant to agree to the plan, but Link gave her a grin to hopefully lighten the mood.

"Hey, one of us has to stay here for when Zelda wakes up. One of us has to tell her its our job to do crazy stunts, and it's her job to be the reasonable one and not send herself flying at a moving ship." Samus's lips upturned slightly, hearing Link joke did lighten the mood slightly. The hero grinned glad he did, and Samus took another drink before looking to the soup Link brought.

He saw the questioning look Samus was giving the food, wondering who made it as it appeared homemade.

"Right so you'll have these little guys to look after too while we go off hunting." Link called over to a room where the door was left open. Out of it three little creatures floated uncertainly out of. Samus tilted her head observing the creatures. They were vaguely raindrop shaped with stubby little arms and legs. Samus wasn't wearing her helmet though, so she couldn't scan the creatures to observe them more.

"Peach calls them Lumas, apparently they found their way into Subspace along with a giant dragon that tried to make a meal of us." Samus' eyebrow rose at the mention of a dragon, but Link just shrugged with a look that said "are you really surprised". Samus shook her head before looking back to the Lumas. The small creatures floating over to them, one was a bright gold color it was the largest and perhaps oldest of the three. It floated over landing on the table hopping over to Link and Samus.

"They can't fight, so best if they just stay on the ship." Samus nodded in understanding watching the three creatures idly. Link gave the creature a small smiled patting it before he stood up.

"Alright I'll be on the bridge getting ready to go. We're all be heading out in a little bit, so rest up a bit metalhead." The nickname Link had once called her in malice had lost all its edge to it, and now the name was said with the affection of a friend. Samus nodding not looking as Link left. She watched the Luma's for a moment before she sighed eating the food before heading off to meet the others on the bridge.

Not long after Samus finished the food, the hunter fully suited went up to meet the others on the bridge. The group was gaining numbers now that they had combined having Link, Peach, Ike, the Ice climbers, Meta Knight, Luigi, Lucario, Bowser and his few goombas and koopa troopers, as well as a newly dubbed Toon Link. After the shock of finding out that they had found a possible ancestor of himself, Link had taken upon himself to nickname the younger hero to end any confusion between them Toon Link had seemed equally excited to find a hero like himself, and just standing next to each other it was clear the two had already formed a kinship of sorts. Even still they were the underdogs at this moment. Master Hand had thoroughly ripped dozens of worlds apart by now while they had scrambled to regroup.

It was agreed on everyone's goal at the moment. While Samus had been unconscious after the fight with the ship that left the Halberd immobile. Meta Knight had managed to drift the ship in between mountains where the air was thick with mist and snow. Making the ship hard to spot, giving the fighters a small amount of breathing room for safety.

The others caught Samus up on the full plan while they were all together. Link, Lucario, and Toon Link were going to the forest to see if they could find the fairy fountain Link described. Peach and Ike were going to investigate a smaller mountain range not too far that the ship had passed on its way here. While the Ice Climbers and Meta Knight were going to look around the mountains around the ship itself, and make sure they were clear of any on lookers that might spot the Halberd. Finally Bowser and Luigi were going to search for the remaining scattered forces of Bowsers army. They were spread thin some even still following Master Hand's orders. Getting back the Koopa King's army would be one less asset that Master Hand would have. If any of them found sign of anyone they knew they were to investigate, but if they ran into trouble they were to return to the Halberd.

Last though Samus' job was to watch over the ship. Even in her damage state Samus could still do a lot of damage, and the goombas and koopa troopers were staying behind as well to provide further back up. Though Samus doubted the small mushroom and turtle people could do much against a foe like a space pirate.

With their plans made everyone headed off to their mission Samus watching as they left the ship quickly disappearing into the mist. The hunter internally sighed already not likely her more defensive role in this plan. The dull throb in her chest and throat reminded the hunter why she was doing it though.

Once everyone was gone Samus did a quick run down of the ship, checking every hallway, every closet, each room to make sure the ship was clear. Only once she confirmed the ship was free of enemies did the hunter allow herself to deactivate her suit. The power suit would repair itself automatically when powered down, and Samus knew she would need its full strength for later when they went on the offensive.

Only in her zero suit now though her wounds were made only more noticeable. Frowning Samus headed to the infirmary, glancing around Samus found some basic medical supplies, some bandages and disinfectants. It wasn't the first time Samus has had to patch herself up before. It was a simple matter to clean and wrap her wounds. Zelda's magic had already done most of the work for her.

Satisfied that her wounds were taken care of since she was in the infirmary anyway Samus went over to check on Zelda. The royal still lay in bed, breathing softly chestnut hair draped around her having fallen out of its normal braid at some point. Bandages were wrapped around her head, as were her hands. Her one arm was wrapped in a splint Samus assuming someone had set a broken bone there.

Samus spotted an unused chair not far away. She grabbed the furniture dragging it over to Zelda's bedside before sitting down. Leaning against the bed Samus took Zelda's hand in hers frowning at the bandages covering the normally slender fingers.

It was strange, now that there was a moment of peace the hunter could actually think on things not associated with their survival. More importantly on something that had been a constant in the back of Samus' mind, and would be in the forefront were they not in such a deadly situation.

Zelda loved her, the royal had said those words and kissed the hunter. It was something that Samus had never even considered happening to her. Samus had lived and fought monstrous creatures, murders, thieves, pirates, and parasites. Finding love was something she never had even considered being apart of her life. The Chozo who raised her never taught her such things. They raised her to fight, so that is what Samus did.

Samus wasn't sure what to do now, she loved Zelda. The hunter wasn't going to deny that. After losing so many people in her life without telling them just how important they were to her. She wasn't going to make the same mistake with Zelda, the hunter made the silent promise to herself to make sure the royal knew that she loved her just as much as the royal cared for her.

If they survived this encounter that was, Samus was always ready to accept her own death. There were even times in her life where she was completely ready for the end to come by her own hand if possible. Zelda however, Samus wouldn't accept the royal's death. Zelda deserve everything, she deserve to live out the rest of her life happily in Hyrule never having to lift a hand in violence again, because the hunter knew Zelda hated fighting.

Rubbing the back of Zelda's hand with her thumb Samus frowned. The royal would be angry at Samus for having these thoughts, but if it came down to it Samus would protect Zelda. She would survive this encounter, she had to.


End file.
